Sunset of the Uzumaki
by Salty Lightning
Summary: Naruto, golden (haired) boy of the esteemed Uzumaki clan, has dreamed of Konoha for his entire life, wanting to serve with their legendary shinobi. When he becomes a genin, his wish comes true, though not in the way he hoped. Instead of cool, powerful ninja, he's stuck on a team with a pink-haired girl, a living cold-shoulder and a sensei who couldn't care less.
1. Chapter 1: A Tepid Welcome

**Disclaimer: I do not own** _ **Naruto**_ **or any of its associated characters or properties.**

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 **Sunset of the Uzumaki: Part One: Sunrise**

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 **Chapter One: A Tepid Welcome**

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Thirty minutes. Thirty minutes is all it took for Naruto's romantic dreams of Konoha to be crushed. The initial walk into the village had hyped the blond up; the massive gate manned by two ninja who obviously hid massive strength behind a façade of half interest certainly screamed "ninja," although Naruto still thought that a brigade of ANBU would have been a cooler welcoming party. The streets of the village were just as Naruto had imagined; rows of merchants and crowds of civilians offered a nice change from sleepy Uzushiogakure, although he could do without all of the attention he got. Naruto could hardly stand still during his short meeting with the Hokage, and his trip meet his new team filled the boy with even more excitement.

But now, faced with three strangers who didn't look all that cool, Naruto started to doubt his fantasies. Sakura seemed alright, but her shockingly pink hair, somewhat grating voice and cheery disposition didn't exactly scream, "cool ninja." She had come off as nice, but a little too reverent of Naruto's Uzumaki heritage for his tastes. At least her intentions were good; protecting the weak seemed like a fine enough reason for being a ninja to Naruto. Kunoichi of the year sounded good as well, but the difference between her scores and Sasuke's gave the blond pause.

Speaking of the Uchiha, Sasuke had shaken Naruto's hand early with a lack of enthusiasm that rivaled a dead fish. Sure, he did seem kind of cool, but not in a cool friend way. More of a cool-like-an-glacier-that-you-try-to-ignore way. Sasuke's scores certainly impressed Naruto, but the Uchiha's icy voice when speaking of elevating the Uchiha clan had worried the blond. Naruto suspected that that comment had been aimed at him, and while he couldn't blame the Uchiha for his anger, it could really hurt the team dynamic.

And then there was Kakashi. Naruto couldn't get any sort of read on the apparently lazy-yet-legendary ninja. Naruto had heard of the man, but he hadn't heard that he was so…bland. Whereas Sakura stood out in a cute, but not very threatening way, and Sasuke made Naruto want to strangle all the cold shoulder out of him, Kakashi, despite dressing in way that begged for attention, seemed to doing a poor job of acting like someone who only half cared. This attitude, combined with his lack of a true introduction, made Naruto wary of the jonin. Ninja didn't make it to the level of Kakashi by being uninteresting and lazy; Naruto just hoped that Kakashi would make a good sensei despite his unwillingness to reveal his true self.

"Congratulations on passing the genin test, I guess," drawled Kakashi, breaking Naruto out of his reverie. "Now that we all know each other, we can begin your ninja training. Before we take any missions, though, there's one more test remaining."

"What? You just said we were genin? Why do we have to take _another_ test?" Naruto indignantly complained.

"I said you passed the genin test, not that you were genin," Kakashi replied with a smile. Or, at least Naruto thought it was a smile. Maybe Kakashi just really had to fart.

"Ah, sensei, what happens if we don't pass this test? Are we still ninja?" Sakura nervously asked.

"Not exactly," Kakashi replied, still keeping up his eye smile.

"Not exactly! What does that eve-"

"Uzumaki! Shut up for once! Sensei, what is the test?" Sasuke said, finally proving that he could speak more than his name.

"I can't tell you that until tomorrow," Kakashi answered before finally schooling his features. "I can tell you this: if you fail, team seven ceases to exist." Kakashi slowly passed his eye over each of his students, as if trying to read something in their faces. "Meet at training ground three at 6am sharp. Oh, and I wouldn't recommend eating breakfast first."

Kakashi made a single hand seal before disappearing in a cloud of smoke. The remaining genin traded glances for a few moments and then walked separate ways, each deep in thought.

* * *

Naruto walked back to his apartment forlorn, his romantic dreams of Konoha finally ground into the dust. He hadn't even gotten to know both of his teammates and now they might be separated. Not to mention that failure on Naruto's part meant a disgraced trip back to Uzushio to face his disappointed mother. Shaking his head, the Uzumaki tried to ignore the furtive glances of nearby civilians, their cheerful greetings only serving to weigh the boy down more. Naruto passed through Konoha's market district in a daze, nearly getting lost on the way to his apartment on the village's outskirts, away from prying eyes and unmet expectations.

Unlocking his door and trudging in, Naruto set to making a cup of instant ramen to cool his nerves. Three agonizing minutes later, the blond munched on his noodles while staring at the only thing he had brought with him to remind him of home: the framed picture of his mother and him on the day of his graduation. Naruto wished he could grin as widely as he did in that picture, and he would give all the ramen in the world (ok, all the ramen in his cabinet) to have his mother there to give words of wisdom and a warm smile. Her sharp wit always put Naruto at peace, and her stories of her ninja escapades could sooth him to sleep no matter how anxious he was.

"Get it together, Naruto! You're a real ninja now! Real ninja don't need their mothers to put them to bed!" Naruto scolded himself while slapping his cheeks. Rising from his meal, Naruto set about his nighttime routine in a daze and tucked himself into his bed without enthusiasm.

Naruto's sleep that night lacked the usual dreams of cool, Konoha ninja; instead, his nightmares of failure featured his mother's disappointed face.

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Sakura's stomach grumbled as she wished, for the third time, that she had ignored her sensei command about breakfast. She stole a quick glance over to her male companions to see if they suffered from a similar fate; Naruto's look of discomfort could be from the lack of food, although Sakura doubted it, and Sasuke somehow still looked like a slightly pissed of ice sculpture.

Sakura had been the first to arrive on the scene, reaching the training ground at 5:30 just in case their sensei tried to pull a fast one. Sasuke had arrived 15 minutes later and responded to Sakura's attempts at starting conversation with terse replies. Sasuke had gone completely silent when Naruto arrived directly on time, and while Naruto had briefly spoken with Sakura, his unease had been so obvious that Sakura gave up after a few minutes. Initially, Sakura had rejoiced when she had heard of her team assignment; the golden boy Uchiha and an Uzumaki were pretty good pulls for teammates. But now, she wasn't so sure, not to mention the fact that if they failed the test, they wouldn't be a team at all.

Kakashi had chosen a rather average training ground for their exam, save the three, worn stumps and polished black stone sculpture in the center. Sakura scoped the place out when she first arrived, checking the clearing, woods and even the nearby river for traps. She'd found nothing at all, leading her to doubt the competence of a sensei who showed up late _and_ failed to trap the training grounds. Speaking of Kakashi, the elder shinobi chose that moment to arrive…three hours late.

"Kakashi-sensei! How are you this late?" Naruto whined, although even that seemed halfhearted to Sakura.

"Oh, sorry. You see, a black cat crossed my path and I had to take the long way around," Kakashi replied blandly. His eye smile didn't exactly help his case. Sakura glanced at her teammates in disbelief, finding shocked expressions on both of their faces. "Well, now that we've all arrived," Kakashi continued, "I guess we may as well start the test."

Kakashi pulled an alarm clock and two bells from his kunai pouch and presented them to the genin. "My test is simple: those who can capture one of these bells in under an hour pass. If you fail to get a bell in the hour allotted, it's back to the academy for you," Kakashi explained. "Or," turning to Naruto, "back home in your case."

"Ah, Ka-kakashi-sensei," Sakura nervously began, her stomach dropping in anticipation of Kakashi's answer, "You're only holding two bells."

"Oh, I am, aren't I?" Kakashi replied, amusement only slightly hidden behind a façade of nonchalance. "Only two of you can pass. The other must other forfeit their hitai-ate and their status as genin." Kakashi then paused for emphasis, smiling at the looks of despair on his students' faces. "Anyway, come at me with intent to kill, or else you'll never have a chance." Kakashi then placed the alarm clock on a stump and turned to face the jumpy genin again.

Sakura knew that she only had one chance at passing. Sasuke had been the rookie of the year for a reason and Uzumaki were legendary for strength and chakra capacity. Naruto and Sasuke had much better chances getting a bell from Kakashi. Sakura would have to use her wits to pass, and she had the beginnings of a plan to do so. She turned to Naruto only to see him pull out a kunai and rush Kakashi. The jonin shimmered and, in a puff of smoke, subdued the genin, turning his kunai back on him.

"I didn't say you could start yet," Kakashi admonished, humor gone from his sole eye. Releasing Naruto, Kakashi dusted his hands off and returned to his relaxed posture. "Alright. There are no rules; just do your best to get the bells. Begin!"

* * *

Sasuke didn't exactly trust Sakura's plan, but it appeared to be the best option. After the jonin gave the signal to begin, Sasuke had leap into the trees and observed Sakura's flight from the clearing and the Uzumaki's initial charge on the jonin, his army of Kage Bunshin catching Kakashi off guard. However, after weathering the initial assault, the silver-haired shinobi had settled into a rhythm of destroying clones, ducking and deflecting, tossing clones into each other and using his superior speed and agility to make the fight look easy. Naruto, to his credit, did pop out an impressive number of solid clones, even for an Uzumaki, and his taijustu looked competent, but not jonin level. Kakashi ended their exchange by bursting through the remaining clones in what looked to Sasuke like a Body Flicker and hit Naruto with a "forbidden jutsu" to the behind.

Sasuke decided to use Naruto's embarrassing launch from the clearing as a distraction as he leapt into the battlefield, attempting to catch Kakashi off guard with a quick barrage from the Phoenix Flower jutsu. Kakashi, in a testament to his skill, easily weaved between the fireballs, quickly approaching Sasuke. In a mild panic, the Uchiha leapt away, covering his flight with more fireballs. Sasuke kept fighting this way for a while, trying to corral Kakashi with his Phoenix Flower fireballs in order to set him up for something more serious. Finally, in his evasion Kakashi strayed close to Sasuke, charging him in a burst of speed. IN a flash, Sasuke whipped through the hand signs for his clan's signature jutsu.

"Fire Release: Grand Fireball Jutsu!" Shouted Sasuke as he fire a massive fireball at Kakashi, forcing the jonin into the air. Knowing that this was likely his only chance, Sasuke raced through the hand signs for his graduation present, a jutsu he had been itching to use in a real battle.

"Fire Release! Great Dragon Fire Technique!" Sasuke shouted as he fired the flame dragon out of his mouth. Kakashi's eyed widened as the flames engulfed him, incinerating him in moments. Shock flooded Sasuke's system as his eyes darted around the clearing, searching for the jonin. He glanced to the right and the left before he pulled a kunai out and jumped forwards, twisting in the air to face… nothing. Sasuke relaxed a little, even as dread crept into his heart. Maybe he really had killed Kakashi.

"Earth Release! Headhunter Jutsu!"

Sasuke's heart sank with his body as Kakashi emerged from the ground, burying Sasuke up to his head in the process. "I must admit, I'm a little disappointed, Sasuke. You did well there until the end, but you lost track of your surroundings." Kakashi intoned, eying Sasuke gravely. "You should never assume the enemy is dead until you see a body. I guess you aren't all that serious about becoming a ninja after all." Kakashi commented, single eye looking down at Sasuke with disgust. The jonin then made a few hand signs and disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Sasuke remained there in the ground, wallowing in his defeat for a few minutes. Suddenly, Sasuke started as he felt a shadow fall over him from behind. "Sasuke, it's me, Sakura." Sakura whispered as she rounded the boy's head. "I have a plan for beating Kakashi, but I'll need your help."

"Why should we team up? The Uzumaki's probably stronger than you. Why should you pass?" Sasuke bit at Haruno.

Haruno flinched a little at the comment, but she quickly steeled herself before replying. "Because I have a way where we can all pass. Besides, do you honestly think that you could take on Kakashi even with Uzumaki's help?"

Sasuke starred long and hard at Haruno, daring her to back down or take back her comment. After a full minute of silence, Sasuke rolled his eyes in the most dignified manner one could while buried up to their head. "Hn. Fine, what's your great plan, Haruno?"

And thus Sasuke found himself crouched in a tree with Haruno, waiting on an _Uzumaki_ to engage Kakashi. Haruno's plan galled Sasuke, but he had to admit that he stood no chance against the jonin alone, and he wouldn't be caught dead on a team with just the Uzumaki. The sound of snapping tree limbs tore Sasuke out of his reverie as Kakashi came crashing through the trees of the training ground in hot pursuit of one orange clad ninja while being harried by a barrage of Uzumaki's clones. Sasuke shot Sakura a quick glance and got curt shake of the head in response. Sasuke knew that he, like most Uchiha, lacked patience, but he just wanted to get this test over with and get out of the god forsaken training grounds. Right as the Uzumaki tornado made it within 10 feet of their tree, Sakura finally gave Sasuke the signal.

"Fire Release! Grand Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke shouted as he dropped out of his tree and launched a fireball out of his mouth. He only hoped that Sakura could pull off her part of the plan effectively.

His fireball destroyed most of the remaining Uzumaki clones, although Sasuke wouldn't have complained if the real one got a little charred. Kakashi, for his part, dodged Sasuke's attack with an ease that implied preparedness. Haruno had planned for that, though, so Sasuke continued his offensive, launching into a barrage of roundhouse kicks as Naruto, presumably the real one, rushed Kakashi with his own taijustu.

"So you two decided to team up, eh? Wouldn't have guessed that the Uchiha and the Uzumaki would be such fast friends." Kakashi mused, his one visible eye crinkled in a smirk. Sasuke frowned at the comment, but focused on the mission at hand, pressing Kakashi with his taijustu forms on autopilot. He just needed to buy his teammates a little more time. Sasuke had just missed Kakashi with an axe kick when he saw Uzumaki out of the corner of his eye giving Sasuke the most obvious wink he had ever seen. Sasuke almost aborted the plan right then to avoid being paired with such an incompetent ninja as the Uzumaki (seriously, what kind of ninja wears bright orange?), but Sasuke's higher reasoning won out. Throwing Uzumaki a return wink, the Uchiha running at Kakashi once again, this time hesitating a little before attacking.

Uzumaki began the assault, rushing Kakashi with an obvious sucker punch. Kakashi's arms came up to block the attack, only for Sasuke to come in with a leg sweep, forcing Kakashi to jump over Sasuke's leg.

"Aha! Got ya, Kakashi-sensei!" Uzumaki yelled as his clone burst from the ground and grabbed Kakashi from behind. "A ninja never lets his opponent get behind him!" The real Uzumaki stuck his arm out at Kakashi and opened his hand, revealing a small piece of paper covered black markings. Sasuke immediately turned away and covered his ears, not managing to fully escape the loud boom of the flashbang seal. Sasuke turned back around to see a completely different situation. Kakashi stood once again, wreath in smoke, presumably from Uzumaki's late clone. Uzumaki stood beaming at Kakashi and, rounding out the scene, Sakura grinned at Sasuke before tossing him and Uzumaki on of the three bells she held.

"Well, sensei? Do we pass?" Sakura asked Kakashi innocently.

"How can you? I said only two of you could pass." Kakashi said darkly, leveling his heavy stare at Sakura.

"You also said that those who can capture one of these bells in under an hour pass, and we all have one of the bells."

Kakashi glared murder at the three of them for a few seconds. "You think you can twist words against a jonin? Do you think this is some kind of game?" Kakashi asked in a low, calm voice, face grave. The genin in turn steeled themselves as well, preparing once again to engage their teacher. Then, out of nowhere, Kakashi broke out into a massive smile. "Well done. You all pass." Kakashi said, before turning to look at Haruno. "I'm most impressed with you, Sakura. Not only did you see through the exercise, you also bent the rules to ensure your victory. When shinobi clash in combat, there are no rules or regulations, just the rule of the sword: the strongest live." Kakashi then turned to address Sasuke. "Sasuke, you impressed me with your jutsu and your tactics, but you failed to see the point of the exercise and only helped your teammates begrudgingly. You also failed to fully check your surroundings; had that been a real fight, you would have been dead as soon as I drug you underground." Sasuke, for his part, blushed briefly before nodding and refusing to meet Kakashi's eyes. Kakashi finally turned his gaze to Uzumaki. "Naruto, you executed your part of the plan well; I didn't expect the seal, and your use of clones to assist Sasuke was impressive. However, you fought too honestly in single combat; you simply charged me and hoped that your clones would be able to overwhelm me. You have a lot of chakra and it's a waste if you use it so simply.

"You all have a lot of potential; no other team has passed my test. Tomorrow, we will take our first mission and begin training. However, I have one more thing to teach you today." Kakashi lead the three genin to a polished, black rock at the center of the training grounds. "On this rock are the names of fallen heroes. This is what it means to be shinobi. The day you put on that hitai-ate, you died." Kakashi paused as the genin's eyes widened in confusion. "You no longer live for yourself, but for the village. You live to serve the Hokage and protect the villagers and your comrades. This test isn't about skill or drive, but a test to determine if you are willing to put your comrades ahead of yourself. Remember this: Those who break the rules are garbage. Those who abandon their comrades are worse than garbage." Kakashi once again paused, no humor in his face as he allowed the severity of his words to sink in to his students. Then, as quickly as his face had turned solemn, Kakashi's eye perked up again as he spoke. "Anyway, we'll meet at training ground four at o-seven-hundred sharp tomorrow to take our first mission. See ya!" Kakashi disappeared suddenly in smoke, leaving only leaves and three somber genin behind.

Uzumaki glanced between his two teammates, seemingly uncertain on how to proceed. Then, suddenly, he leapt up in the air, pumping his fist. "Yeah! We did it! We passed!" Uzumaki shouted as he jumped up and down, massive smile and energetic movements begging his teammates to join in. Haruno broke out into a grin, and even Sasuke managed a little smirk. "Now we're a team for real. Let's show the world that we're the coolest shinobi of all time!" Uzumaki then stuck out his fist in anticipation.

Sasuke just stared at Uzumaki's outstretched arm like it was an ambush waiting to happen. "What are you doing, idiot?" Sasuke asked, although his tone lacked some of the bite that it held earlier.

"Duh, you're supposed to fist bump it."

Sasuke just continued to stare. Sakura, on the other hand, stuck her fist out as well. "Come on, Sasuke. We couldn't have done it without you," Sakura added with a smile.

Sasuke still stared at his teammates.

And stared.

Finally, after a full 30 seconds of pure silence, Sasuke relented. "Fine. If it will get you two to stop this silliness. We're not children anymore: we're shinobi," Sasuke said, but he still stuck out his fist, connecting the three. Sasuke wouldn't admit it until far later, but the smiles he got from his teammates was well worth it.

 **CHAPTER END**

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 **Justu List:**

|Technique Name: Fire Release: Great Dragon Fire Technique | Type: Ninjutsu | Rank: B | Description: The user compresses and molds fire chakra in their body before releasing it through the mouth in the form of a dragon. This compression of fire chakra leads to the jutsu being extremely hot, even for a fire type technique. However, this compression makes the Great Dragon Fire Technique difficult from a chakra control perspective and more costly.

|Technique Name: Flashbang Seal | Type: Fūinjutsu| Rank: C |

Description: The seal emulates a real flashbang, confusing targets with a bright flash that can blind for moments and a loud noise that can cause temporary deafness and disruption of equilibrium. The seal's effects extend out in a cone in front of the user, so it is useless against targets behind the user.

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 **Author's Note: Thank you all for reading! This is my first fanfic, so I'd really appreciate any feedback you have to offer, so PLEASE REVIEW! Yes, I'm taking to you, reader.**

 **As a small style note, I want to clear up the use of Japanese in this fic. I thought about using Japanese for the jutsu because I watched the anime subbed, but I decided on going almost entirely English on this fic. There will be some honorifics sprinkled in, but don't expect it to be all "Kakashi-san" and "Sakura-chan." I also decided on hitai-ate instead of forehead protector because forehead protector is kind of a pain to write every time and I've always felt that jutsu techniques.**

 **AN 2 (9/10/15): Made a few small edits to the chapter. I decided to add some jutsu descriptions. For reference, the great dragon fire jutsu is the jutsu that Sasuke uses to heat up the air during his fight with Kakashi.**

 **Hope you enjoyed! Thanks for reading!**

 **-Salty Lightning**


	2. Chapter 2: The Best Kind of Team Dynamic

**Disclaimer: I do not own** _ **Naruto**_ **or any of its associated characters or properties.**

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 **Chapter 2: The Best Kind of Team Dynamic**

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Growing up in Uzushiogakure, Naruto had learned that nothing was a better reward for an accomplishment than a good meal. Kushina had cooked Naruto a huge meal when he passed the genin test in Uzushio, but since she wasn't in Konoha, Naruto was forced to find a suitable replacement. Naruto wandered the streets of Konoha aimlessly, looking for something that caught his fancy. He had almost stopped at a barbeque place, but he really wanted some ramen. So far, he hadn't passed any, but he wouldn't give up that easily. Ramen was worth the wait.

Naruto had debated asking some of the villagers about the best ramen place, but he was hesitant to approach them. Wherever he passed, he noticed people watching him and he heard a few whispered "Uzumaki"s. The blond had hoped that his hair color would be enough to throw the villagers off; he lacked the trademark scarlet hair that most Uzumaki had. Even still, the obvious Uzumaki spiral on his back had probably been a dead giveaway; that, or the gate guards had spread around the news. Naruto loved attention, but the idea of being a local celebrity just for his heritage just rubbed him the wrong way. He didn't want people helping him or treating him well just for family name; he wanted to earn their respect and acknowledgement. Still, Naruto would have to give in and just ask if he didn't find a ramen…

 _Ichiraku Ramen_. Naruto had to force himself to not sprint over to the small stand to avoid knocking people over and causing a scene. He couldn't keep the grin off his face as he sat down at one of the stools; nothing could beat ramen as a post-training meal.

"Hello! Forgive me, but are you new around?" asked an older man who must have owned the stand.

"Yeah! The name's Naruto. Naruto…" Naruto trailed off, unwilling to divulge his last name if he could avoid it.

"Uzumaki! You're the new Uzumaki in town!" squeaked a teenaged brunet in a dirtied apron from behind the counter. "Naruto Uzumaki! How long have you been here? Do you like Konoha? Oo, what's it like living in Uzushiogakure? Are there a lot of whirlpools around? Do…"

"Ayame! Stop badgering our customer?" the old man admonished, shaking his head. "You'll have to forgive my daughter, Uzumaki-san. She's very excitable. The name's Teuchi, and this is my daughter Ayame."

"Please, just call me Naruto." Naruto said with a slight blush. It was always awkward when people referred to him by his last name. "I just got into Konoha yesterday. I just passed my genin test, and I'm really in the mood for some ramen. Do you serve miso?"

"Of course! I'll start on it right away. The first bowl's on the house; consider it a thankyou from Konoha to Uzushio."

"Thanks…" Naruto sheepishly replied. "I'll take it, but that had better be the only one, for your sake. I can really eat some ramen."

"We'll see about that, son." Teuchi chuckled in reply as he served Naruto his first bowl.

"Thanks!"

Naruto began eating quickly, slurping down the bowl. "Wow, that was some good ramen. Could I have another?"

Teuchi replied with a smile as he began preparing another bowl. "How are you liking Konoha so far?"

Naruto's face screwed up a little at that. "It's not at all what I expected. Growing up in Uzushio, I always heard that Konoha shinobi were the best in the world. Of the ones I've met so far, I'm not impressed. Plus, I get more attention here than I'd like."

Teuchi's eyebrow raised at that. "Oh really? I've not known you long, but you don't seem like a shy type."

Naruto shook his head. "I don't mind the attention, but I want it for my own merits, not just because the people of Konoha feel indebted to my clan."

Teuchi set another bowl in front of Naruto and waited until Naruto had begun eating to continue. "I wouldn't claim to know a lot about shinobi, but aren't there a lot of famous shinobi who hail from big clans? The Sandaime is a Sarutobi, and they're renowned."

"Yeah, what's the point?" Naruto replied through a mouth full of noodles, blue eyes piercing Teuchi's dirty browns.

"Well, when I think of the Hokage, I don't think of him as a Sarutobi." Teuchi responded with a smile. "Maybe the solution to your problem is to become strong enough to be acknowledged for your own strength, not your clans."

Naruto perked up at that. "Wow, Teuchi, that's pretty smart. Thanks a lot!"

"Well, at least something comes with age." Teuchi chuckled in response. "If you ever need more advice, a listening ear or a warm meal, feel free to drop by. Those first two will always be on the house.

* * *

"Kakashi-sensei, you said we were doing missions. Painting fences isn't a mission." Naruto whined as he stared at the dirty fence before him.

"Ah, I did say that, didn't I?" Kakashi replied cryptically before pulling out his orange book and siting down.

"So, do we still have to paint the fence?" Naruto asked impatiently.

"That's what the mission scroll says." Kakashi replied, not taking his eye off of his book.

"Oh! We're supposed to look "underneath-the-underneath" here, right?" Sakura said, eyes screwed up in concentration. "I've got it! We have Naruto's clones paint the fence while we train!" Naruto perked up at that, setting his hands into the cross seal as Sasuke nodded his head.

"Nope. You three are supposed to be painting the fence." Kakashi replied blandly, before turning his eye on his students in a hard glance. "If you all can't figure out why, maybe you're not cut out for being shinobi after all." The genin paled at this exclamation and quickly began painting the fence.

"Pss. Sakura." Naruto staged-whispered to his female teammate. "Why are we doing this?"

Sakura shrugged in reply. Sasuke, who had been pretending not to care, grunted and redoubled his efforts in painting the fence. The fence in question spanned thirty feet, standing three dingy-white feet tall. Even three trained, motivated genin couldn't finish the job too quickly. The fence belonged to a landlord in the middle of the shopping district. The fence outlined the lawn for an apartment complex for some villagers who worked in the center of Konoha.

"Maybe it's a test!" Naruto stage-whispered to his team mates, "Kakashi is pretty sneaky; maybe he wants us to use jutsu, but do it so that he can't tell!"

"If you use jutsu, I'll know," Kakashi deadpanned, "and if you do, you fail the mission immediately."

At that, the genin returned to their work in earnest.

Soon, the streams of villagers walked by the genin, headed on their ways to shop or eat lunch. More and more of these villagers stopped to admire the work on the fence, a few of them even calling out words of encouragement.

"Why do people care about us paint a fence?" Sakura asked in confusion.

Naruto rubbed his head sheepishly, clearly having some idea of why, but it was Sasuke who replied in an annoyed tone, "It's because of the idiot. They've come to see him."

Sakura gave Naruto a puzzled look. "I guess it's not every day that you see an Uzumaki." She finished a few more strokes with her brush before pausing for a minute, deep in thought.

"What is it, Sakura?" Naruto asked.

"I'm think I have some idea of why we have this mission," Sakura replied absentmindedly, "it has something to do with you."

Sasuke regarded the crowd for a moment, noting the amount of attention he was getting as well as his blond teammate. Gaze sharpening with realization, Sasuke returned to his painting with even more gusto. "Well, _Uzumaki_ , if they're here to watch us, why don't we give them a show."

"Fine, why don't we?" Naruto replied, narrowing his eyes at Sasuke.

* * *

The landlord had expected the genin team to be done in around three hours. They had finished in one. The sweaty Uchiha had beaten the Uzumaki to the door with the mission scroll, but the scroll had mysteriously disappeared in a puff of smoke. The Uzumaki handed the landlord another, identical scroll from his pocket as Uchiha glared bloody murder at him. The landlord chose not to question it; shinobi were weird like that.

"This is a strange request, but can I get a picture of you two in front of the fence?" The landlord asked the young genin. The Uzumaki opened his mouth to say something, tossing a look over at his pink-haired teammate.

"They'd love to. Come on, you two." Their masked sensei broke in, smiling as wide as his single eye would allow. The two genin shuffled awkward in front of the fence, finally posing with their arms crossed and standing five feet apart.

"No, I want a picture of you two together, like the team that you are." The landlord admonished. The two genin shuffled closer together. "There. Now, Uzumaki, put your arm around the Uchiha's shoulder. And both of you, smile!" Sasuke shot Kakashi a glare so sharp and hot that Kakashi probably would have been seared in half if he wasn't so busy smiling to notice. Finally, after almost a minute of awkward silence, Naruto jerkily slapped his arm onto Sasuke's shoulder while giving a pained smile. Sasuke also relented, and the landlord finally took his picture.

"What a great photo! Would you be able to give me a copy when you get this developed?" Kakashi cheerily asked the landlord, who eagerly assented before signing the mission scroll and returning it to the team. After a few more thankyous, the genin squad left the apartment building behind, the two boys standing as far away from one another as possible.

* * *

A paint-splotched and sweaty team seven made their way to training ground four, a training ground nearly identical to the one the team had used the day prior, sans the wooden posts and memorial stone. Bring his team to a stop in the clearing in the center of the training grounds, Kakashi turned to address his team. "So, how did you enjoy your first D rank?" Kakashi asked with an eye grin that made Sasuke leak a little killing intent.

Sasuke braced himself for the Uzumaki's impending stupid and loud exclamation, but Haruno beat him to it. "Kakashi-sensei, what was up with that? That didn't feel much like a mission?" Haruno questioned so quizzically that Sasuke swore he could hear gears turning in her head.

"Why not? You did exactly as you were assigned, didn't you?" Kakashi asked in return.

"Because we didn't _do_ anything!" Naruto blurted out, "Anyone can paint a fence; why hire a bunch of ninja to do it?"

"Well, for one, genin make for cheap, efficient labor," Kakashi began, face serious, "but our team was picked specifically for this mission. Sakura, why do you think that is?"

Caught off guard, Sakura's eyes widened before she hesitantly answered. "Is it because Naruto and Sasuke are on the team?"

"Of course. Now, I don't need to tell you all why having an Uchiha and an Uzumaki cooperating would be a big deal," Kakashi said, looking at the two boys, "and I think you can figure that out for yourself, Sakura, given your knowledge of history. Ninja aren't just sent on missions to fight or do flashy things for the Hokage; they're meant to represent and further the village in all ways. Suffice it to say that the Hokage has a vested interest in having at least the appearance of an Uchiha and an Uzumaki getting along.

"Now that that's cleared up, I didn't bring you all out here to talk about missions. Today we begin you actual training."

Kakashi ran team seven through a couple of team building exercises designed to encourage teamwork before teaching them a few basic formations. Kakashi drilled them on what formations to take when intercepting a target, when escaping from a situation, when in heavy combat, whether Kakashi was present or not. The team begrudgingly followed, awkwardly falling into their positions.

Then, with this basic training out training out of the way, Kakashi once again addressed his team. "Normally, at such an early level I would train my team on chakra control and more formations. However, you all are so ahead of the curve that I'll give you some more productive training. I assume you all know how to tree walk." The two boys quickly nodded as Sakura sheepishly shook her head. "Oh, ok. Tree walking is sort of like the leaf-sticking exercise they teach you in the academy, except you stick your feet to the tree with a thin layer of chakra instead of sticking leaves to your hand using a tiny layer of chakra. Naruto, could you demonstrated?"

Naruto quickly nodded before bounding up the tree; Sakura tried her best to commit his movements to memory, although she doubted that she would run that fast. "Very good, Naruto." Kakashi complemented with a smile, receiving one in return from the blond. "Alright, Sakura, you give it a go." Sakura tentatively placed on foot on the tree, applying her chakra evenly across her sandal. Sakura made her first three steps up the tree slowly before deciding to go all out and bounding up the tree.

Kakashi clapped as Sakura sat down on a branch near the top of the tree. "Very impressive, Sakura. It takes a great deal of chakra control get that exercise down on the first try. You can come down now." Kakashi praised. He waited for Sakura return to ground level before continuing. "Well, like I was saying, since all of you know how to tree walk, I think your chakra control is good enough for now. Instead, I'll teach you all really cool jutsu."

At that, Naruto broke out into a massive smile while his teammates just regarded their sensei suspiciously. "I'm not lying. I will teach you all cool jutsu…if you can pass my test." Kakashi finished, smirking as his student's faces fell. "We're going to do the bell test again. This time, if you three can take one bell from me, I'll teach you jutsu suited to your needs as shinobi. Until you get the bell, though, all I'll teach you is formations." Kakashi paused before pulling out a single bell, this time black instead of the polished aluminum of the previous two. "Oh, and this bell is special. I'll know if the bell you all have is the real thing, and this bell can't be substituted with. I want you three to take this bell by force." Kakashi fell into a ready stance, his students mirroring it after a moment. "You may begin when ready."

The genin glanced at each other briefly and then burst into action. Naruto summoned half a dozen clones who immediately charged Kakashi while the three genin leapt back. "Uzumaki, you try to keep Kakashi occupied with your clones. Don't you dare let up for anything! Haruno, you…" Sasuke began, before Naruto cut in.

"Who put you in charge, Sasuke?" Naruto spat indignantly. "Shouldn't we make this decision as a _team_?"

"We don't have any time for that, Uzumaki! Just shut your mouth and do it!" Sasuke shouted back, meeting Naruto's glare with one of his own.

"Guys, we can't beat Kakashi like this!" Sakura broke in, pushing her way between the two hotheaded boys. "Naruto, could you please try out Sasuke's plan? It worked well during our genin test." Soft green eyes met sharp blues as Sakura begged Naruto. Turning away sharply, Naruto pushed in at Kakashi, replacing his rapidly replenishing clones with new ones. "What do you want me to do?" Sakura asked her dark-haired teammate. "I'll follow your lead for now, but I hope you have a good idea."

Sasuke had a slight scowl as he explained to Sakura. "We can use a plan similar to the one from the genin test. Do you think you can confuse Kakashi with some genjutsu long enough for me to grab the bell?" Sasuke questioned, face intense with concentration.

Sakura shrugged in return. "I might be able to, but even during the genin exam, my genjutsu didn't hold for long against Kakashi. You're going to have to move fast." Sakura then leapt into the trees above, concealing herself.

Sasuke steeled himself before charging in to assist Naruto. Naruto didn't appear to be doing very well; he constantly summoned clones to take blows for him and Kakashi's efficient taijustu forced him to substitute with his clones just to stay in the fight. Sasuke rushed in while going through the hand signs for a great fireball, attempting to force Kakashi in the air like he had in the day prior.

Kakashi glanced at Sasuke, stopping abruptly in his steady assault on the Uzumaki's clones to pull back, making hand signs of his own. "Sasuke, you can't just use the same tricks over and over and expect them to work." Kakashi warned, finishing his hand signs at the same time as Sasuke.

"Fire Release! Grand Fireball Jutsu!"

"Water Release! Gunshot!"

Sasuke's fireball and Kakashi's water bullet collided in a massive amount of steam, forcing Sasuke and Naruto back for fear of being burned. The large cloud of steam left behind shrouded the jonin completely as the genin searched for their sensei. "Kakashi, you can't just use the same tricks and expect them to work." Sasuke snidely commented as he forcefully struck the ground with an axe kick, tearing up sections of earth. Suddenly, Sasuke found himself staring up at the blue sky above him, his head feeling like a smashed watermelon. A warbled scream drifted into his consciousness, but he couldn't bring himself to care. The sky seemed too blue, like an ocean that threatened to swallow Sasuke whole. As his vision blacked out, Sasuke gave in entirely to his exhaustion, his mind drifting into the clouds above.

* * *

Sakura walked home alone that night, her thoughts alone keeping her company. She shuffled without much purpose, taking in the evening air around her. Naruto had left the training ground quickly, saying that he had an important meeting or something. Kakashi had assured the two that Sasuke would be fine after a short trip to the hospital. That left Sakura alone in the clearing, observing the torn and damp ground left by the fight. After a moment of reflection, Sakura headed back home. Sakura was deep in thought when she noticed a presence match step with her, turning to see a slouching Kakashi.

"Kakashi-sensei?" Sakura said owlishly. "What are you doing here?"

"I'm here to talk to you, Sakura. Can a sensei not spend time with his students?"  
Something about the way he said that didn't sit right with Sakura. "What do you want, Kakashi?"

"How did you feel your performance today, Sakura?" Kakashi asked, growing more serious.

"Me personally or the team?"

"Just you."

"Well, I was no help." Sakura replied sadly, "My genjutsu had almost no effect on you and I couldn't really support Naruto on the ground."

"Is that really what you want to do, Sakura? Support your teammates?"

Sakura gave Kakashi a tense shrug. "I guess? It seems like my most useful role on the squad. Both Sasuke and Naruto have heavy combat covered, so I'd probably be best used patching up the holes in their styles.

"An astute observation. But how do you intend to support your teammates?" Kakashi pressed, "As you saw today, clever use of academy level jutsu has limited usage."

"I don't know."

"Is that it? Will you give up that easily?" Kakashi asked, moving to block Sakura's path. "What if your team was in a life threatening position tomorrow? Would 'I don't know' be a valid response to the Hokage when explaining the deaths of your teammates? I'm asking you these things, Sakura, because I see a lot of untapped potential in you. You're right, a support role would greatly enhance the level of the squad. Are you really serious about this role?"

"Of course I am! It's too late for me to turn back even if I wanted to!" Sakura answered hotly. "If our team was in danger tomorrow, I'd do everything I could to keep everyone alive! I don't know how to support my team well enough now, but I'll figure it out!"

Kakashi's face softened as he visibly relaxed. "Good. Good good good. I'm sorry if I upset you, Sakura. I just had to be sure before I continued." Kakashi said before moving to begin walking again, Sakura tentatively following behind him. "You know, you remind me a lot of myself when I was younger: a regular shinobi born without a crazy bloodline or an insane amount of chakra who has to push themselves to be competent. You're good for your age Sakura, you really are, but you're going to have to be operating at your best if you want to keep up with monsters like Naruto and Sasuke.

"I'd like to train you in some genjutsu and some more offensive ninjutsu to make you a more well-rounded fighter, but I promised not to train you all in jutsu until you stole the bell from me." Kakashi then turned to Sakura. "If you really want to help the team, figure out a way to do that. After that, I can help you figure out how to support team seven. I am your sensei, after all." Kakashi smiled at Sakura, ruffled her hair and Body Flickered away in a puff of smoke, leaving Sakura to finish her walk and begin her planning.

* * *

Naruto approached the Hokage's desk for his meeting, back ramrod straight. "You wanted to see me, Hokage-sama?"

The Sandaime's eyes crinkled in a smile as examined the blond. "Ah, Naruto, no need to be so formal," the Hokage gently admonished, "Please, sit. I may be your superior now, but I hope we can continue the same friendship we've always had."

Naruto's nose screwed up at that as he took the leather chair in front of the Hokage's desk. "I wouldn't exactly call you a friend. You're more like, hmm… a friendly, old uncle. Or a cool grandpa."

Hiruzen just chuckled in return. "If only I could get some of my other ninja to regard me so loosely. Now, on to business." The Sandaime sat up straighter at that, steel gaze instilling a kind of fearful respect. "How have you enjoyed your time here in Konoha?"

"It's pretty cool, I guess," Naruto answered, fidgeting a little in his chair, "It's big. Like, _really_ big. The ramen's good, and the villagers seem nice."

"I've seen the way they been treating you. Nice might be a bit of an understatement." Hiruzen replied coyly. "What do you think of your team?"

"I like Sakura; she's friendly and we get along well. Sasuke is kind of a bastard, but at least he's strong." Naruto explained, "Kakashi's weird, though. His test was insane, and now he's refusing to train us."

The Sandaime's eyebrows quirked at that. "Really now? He refused to train you?"

"Well, he said that he wouldn't teach us techniques or anything until we could pass another version of the bell test."

The Hokage stroked his beard in silence before answering. "Well, Kakashi is a jonin. You don't get to be that rank for being stupid. Why do you think he wants your team to pass another bell test before learning new techniques?"

"I don't know, because he's a bastard?"

At this, the Hokage broke out into full, belly-laughter as Naruto stared on displeasure. After a few coughs and moments to regain his composure, Hiruzen addressed Naruto again. "Never change, Naruto. This shinobi world needs a few more laughs. Anyway, I've known Kakashi for many years and I've never known him to do anything just to be a "bastard." You should think on it more, Naruto. Surely you've noticed that there's more to you sensei than meets the eye." The Sandaime exhaled again, deflating to look once more like an old man. "One more question, Naruto, and you can leave. How is your prisoner?"

In a flash, Naruto's face faded from annoyance to embarrassment. "He's fine, I guess. No problems."

"So you've had no difficulties since coming to Konoha? I know I don't have to tell you this, Naruto, but this is very serious. Do you need to meet with your clan at all right now to adjust your seals or meet with the-"

"No! I swear, I'm fine, Hokage-sama. Really," Naruto assured, face panicked as he jumped from his chair, "Is that it? Can I go now?"

Hiruzen offered Naruto an assuring smile. "Of course, Naruto. Go home and rest. If you ever need any help or someone to talk to, my door is always open."

"Thanks! See ya, grandpa!" Naruto yelled over his shoulder as he practically sprinted out of the Hokage's office.

* * *

 **CHAPTER END**

* * *

If you're a ninja, and you probably should be if you're reading this, you've heard of the battle at the Valley of the End between Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju (if you haven't heard of it, put this essay down, repent, and return to the academy immediately). This battle is so legendary and awesome because it showcases the very height of shinobi power: two forces so powerful that they shaped the very landscape around them in their daunting battle to the death. Looking at something like that, you'd think that most shinobi fights are hours long, going down to the wire as both parties exhaust themselves in heavy combat.

You'd be wrong. Most shinobi fights are quick and dirty, ended in a single move. There are only three kinds of fights that go long: a battle between two ninja of nearly identical skill, a fight where one shinobi is deliberately holding back and a fight where one ninja is stalling. Never, ever hold back; I still remember watching a jonin be killed by a green genin team during the Second Shinobi World War because the jonin thought that he could play around a little. As far as stalling goes, it takes real skill to be able to stall out a superior opponent, so that's pretty uncommon. The battle at the Valley of the End, then, is an example of two great shinobi so well matched that they had to go the distance before one of them cracked.

However, for most of your shinobi career, you're going to be in fast fights. In fact, if you're unlucky enough to end up in a war, most fights last a single strike. Now, why does this matter, you may ask? Isn't this speed of fight inevitable, and thus pointless to talk about? Well, not quite. You see, if you know that the fights not gonna last long, you're going to fight differently: you'll immediately go for the kill and use whatever little tricks you can to gain the upper hand.

This is how true shinobi fight. Only fools wish for their careers to be full of long, intense battles that will make great stories later. I'll admit that I once resided in this camp, before I had a few legendary fights of my own. Even now, decades later, I remember my fight with Hanzo of the Salamander like it happened yesterday. I remember the adrenaline, the dread that came with the understanding of Hanzo's power, the desperate scramble to hold on to life under the onslaught of a true master of the art. You don't want that. Trust me, do what you can to avoid tough fights; instead, fight fast, fight dirty, fight to win. If you can sneak up to a guy and kill him while he sleeps, awesome; you minimized risk and won in the most efficient way possible. Legends are those who live through dangerous battles, not those who seek them out.

 _-Jiraiya of the Sannin, in his book "Short lessons for novice ninja," essay entitled "Quick and Dirty."_

* * *

 **Jutsu List:**

|Technique Name: Water Release: Gunshot | Type: Ninjutsu | Rank: C |

Description: The user compresses and molds water chakra and shoots it out of their mouth in "bullets." These bullets travel at high velocities and can cause injury or potentially death. It is important to note that Gunshot is one of the few Water Release techniques that does not require a body of water.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Wow that turned out to be a lot longer than I expected.**

 **Thanks again for reading! I really appreciate all of you who read, followed, favorited and reviewed the last chapter; seriously, all of you give me the motivation to keep writing. If you enjoy the story, or even if you didn't, _please_ let me know in a review. **

**As a note, I did edit the last chapter slightly to correct a misspelling and add a jutsu list. I'm not gonna write descriptions for every jutsu used, but instead for the ones that people might not know or for ones that need some clarification. So don't expect a listing for the Grand Fireball or the Shadow Clone jutsu; you guys know those already. Also, I'll be putting those little sidebars at the end of chapters. The sidebars may not have anything to do with the events of a given chapter, but they're meant to give a little more color to world and in some cases provide background info.**

 **Thanks for reading!**

 **-Salty Lightning**


	3. Chapter 3: The Departure of Naïveté

**Chapter 3: The Departure of Naiveté**

* * *

Naruto glanced around suspiciously as he and his team walked into the Hokage tower, reporting in to receive their daily mission. He scrutinized the secretary as she waved them in; her unremarkable features must be have the perfect Transformation for a legendary ninja. Naruto whistled nonchalantly as team seven approached the mission assignment desk and the Hokage's smiling face.

Confusion washed over Sakura's face as she heard Naruto begin his "normal" routine. "What's going on, Naruto? Are we under a genjutsu or something?" Sakura whispered to Naruto while looking straight ahead.

"No. Probably. I mean, I don't really know." Naruto whispered back. "Look at Kakashi. He's not reading or staring off into space; he's even smiling. Something's up; maybe this is some kind of training exercise."

"I know you all have important things to discuss, but let's not waste any more of the Hokage's time," Kakashi broke in. "You got a mission for us, Hokage-sama?"

The wizened Hokage smiled graciously at team seven. "Why, yes I do," affirmed the Sandaime, before addressing the genin. "Tell me, do you think that your team is ready for a C rank, or would you rather continue with things the way they are?"

"We're ready. Please, Hokage-sama, give us a C rank." Sasuke replied, almost succeeding in making it sound like he wasn't begging.

"Well, I think you're ready as well." Replied the Sandaime before taking a small scroll from the desk in front of him and handing it the Kakashi. "You mission will be simple: escort a merchant to his home in the capital, Tanyu." The Sandaime then addressed one of his attendants, "Send Ryusei in."

A few moments later, a middle-aged man in scarlet linen robes walked into the room. "So this will be my escort? My name is Ryusei, nice to meet you." Said Ryusei, bowing to the ninja. "I trust that we will have a safe trip back to the capital."

"Is that it?" asked Naruto with a look of disappointment on his face. "No heavy combat with enemy shinobi? No saving princesses? No top secret intel to transport?"

Hiruzen chuckled at the blond, shaking his head in mirth. "No, nothing like that. C rank missions tend to be a little more…tame than that. You shouldn't expect to face any enemy shinobi. The road to the capital doesn't even have many bandits. You all are an insurance policy."

"I think he meant to say 'a little more _lame_ than that,'" Naruto whispered to Sakura behind his hand, eliciting a giggle from the girl and a stern look from his teacher.

"Your team will be representing Konoha in Tanyu," the Sandaime continued, "so be on your best behavior. I expect great things from you, team seven. You leave at 6 am from the main gates. Good luck!"

* * *

Sakura smiled softly to herself as she listened to Naruto chatter excitedly about their upcoming mission. Naruto's easygoing confidence smoothed over her nerves about the mission. She only wished that Sasuke had agreed to come to this team lunch. He seemed to be warming up a bit, but he still wouldn't spend any more time than he had to with the Uzumaki.

"… and then I'll be like "Welcome to Fire Country, man!" and punch the enemy ninja out in one blow!" boasted Naruto as he finished his dramatic prophesy of their upcoming mission.

"'Welcome to Fire Country, man?' Is that the best you've got? You may as well just say "That's how we do it in Konoha" afterwards, too." Sakura teased, giggling as Naruto blanched.

"'That's how we do it in Konoha'? That sounds pretty dumb, Sakura." Naruto deadpanned.

"Anyway, if we're done making bad one liners, I think we're here." Sakura observed as they approached Ichiraku Ramen.

"Yo, Teuchi! This is my teammate Sakura!" Naruto greeted as he held the flap of the stand open for Sakura.

"Nice to meet you, Sakura. I've heard good things about you." The cook said with a smile.

Sakura flushed at that. "Oh really? What has Naruto been saying about me?" Sakura asked tentatively.

"Oh, he mentions how nice you are, how cool his sensei is, and how much of a "bastard" that other boy is," Teuchi replied. "Now, what can I get you started with?"

"I'll have whatever Naruto's having." Sakura said absentmindedly, turning to Naruto.

"Two miso ramen it is, then!" Teuchi said before getting to work.

"Sasuke's a "bastard"? I thought you two were getting along better?" Sakura asked Naruto, drilling him with quizzical, green eyes.

"We are, I guess. He _is_ a bastard, though." Naruto replied, looking a little sheepish. "No matter how nice I try to be to him, he still acts all… bastardy, you know?"

"How dare you call Sasuke a bastard! He's way cooler than you, blondie!" Shouted a high-pitched voice.

Naruto swung around to see a platinum-haired teenager dressed in purple flanked by a bored-looking guy with pineapple hair and a husky dude eating chips. "Yeah, Sasuke _is_ cooler than me. I actually have a pulse!" Naruto shouted back at the girl.

"Whoa whoa whoa, you two! Calm down!" Sakura admonished as she pushed her way between the two blonds. "Naruto, this is Ino, my best friend. She's obsessed with Sasuke, so don't take offense. Ino, this is Naruto, my teammate. He's cool, so leave him alone, ok?"

Naruto huffed and turned his head defiantly away from Ino. "Well, I won't be offended if Ino just apologizes."

Ino flashed in anger at that. "Why should I apologize? You called Sasuke a bastard! All I did was point out the obvious."

At this point Teuchi stepped in. "Look, I have a strict no-fighting policy at my stand. If you two are going to have it out, you're going to have to leave. So you three," Teuchi said pointing to the trio of new genin, "are going to have to either order something or leave."

The husky boy quickly sat, prompting the lazy one to roll his eyes and sit as well. Naruto and Sakura sat as Teuchi gave them their ramen and finally Ino took the seat between the lazy guy and Sakura.

"We'll all have what they're having." The husky guy said, gesturing to Naruto and Sakura. Teuchi nodded before returning to work. "Oh, I'm Choji, by the way, and this is Shikamaru," Choji explained, pointing to the lazy boy who nodded in turn, "We were all in the same class as Sakura and Sasuke."

Teuchi set down six bowls of ramen and the genin went silent for a while, enjoying their meal. "How's your team been doing?" Sakura asked team 10 between mouthfuls of noodles.

Ino perked up at this. "We're doing good, really good! We already got a C rank; we leave tomorrow. This is our celebratory lunch," Ino bragged, smirking at her fellow blond.

Naruto slipped Ino a sly grin. "Well, we have a C rank tomorrow as well. We get to go to the capital!"

Ino huffed in response. "You just made that up on the spot!"

Sakura shook her head. "No, he's telling the truth. We have a C rank tomorrow; we're escorting a merchant back to Tanyu."

"Aw, really? Our first C rank is just escorting some drunk bridge builder back home to some backwater village." Ino whined, deflating, "I wish we could go to the capital."

"Well, good luck!" Sakura said, standing and leaving some money on the counter, "I'd better go start preparing. Thanks for the food, Teuchi!"

Naruto quickly stood as well. "I'd better leave too. I guess I'll see you guys around."

The two boys offered friendly nods while Ino turned away in defiance. Naruto and Sakura departed, splitting with a quick, "good luck," and "see ya," before returning to their respective homes.

* * *

Sasuke almost regretted turning down Naru-the Uzumaki's lunch invitation, but he _did_ have some clan business to attend to. Sasuke shook off his guilt as he stepped into the Uchiha district. The Uchiha district was the largest clan compound in the village, and while it was open to the public, only the Uchiha actually lived there. Sasuke acknowledged the greetings of his clansmen as he passed through the small market sector of the district, nodding to fruit salesmen and blacksmiths. He made his way up to the residential sector, picking up his pace to avoid being stopped. Reaching his home, Sasuke quickly slipped off his sandals and practically jumped up the stairs by the door, eager to find his brother.

"Itachi? Mother? I'm home early today!" Sasuke called into the house. He craned his neck into Itachi's room but found nothing but his brother's neatly made futon and dresser. Turning and running back down the stairs, Sasuke almost ran right into his mother, her dark eyes alight with surprise and happiness.

"Sasuke! I thought you had a mission today?" Mikoto cooed, hugging her son, "What are you doing home so early?"

Sasuke returned his mother's hug for a moment before breaking away with a soft smile. "Mother, I got assigned a C rank!" Sasuke excitedly told his mother, "I'll be leaving the village tomorrow morning."

Mikoto's smile faded as her face became graver, aging her years in a single moment. "Oh, is that so?" Mikoto asked, forcing a tight smile, "That's great, honey. Promise me one thing: you have to be safe. That's an order."

Sasuke rolled his eyes. "I'm a ninja now; we're never really safe," Sasuke remarked, "Anyway, where's Itachi? I want to tell him the news."

Mikoto shook her head. "He's on a mission. I don't know when he'll be back."

Sasuke's face fell, his sagging shoulders showing his disappointment. "Oh, ok. I've got to get ready for my mission. I'll be in my room if you need me." Sasuke disappeared in a flurry of movement as he bounded up the stairs, leaving his mother to worry alone.

* * *

Sasuke had been eager to take this C rank, itching for a chance to fight anyone besides his sensei. Genin generally didn't take C ranks until they had some experience they risked facing bandits; even well trained genin could falter in their first real combat situation, so bandits, although weak, were a risk. For the first few hours of the mission, Sasuke had remained vigilant, searching every tree with his eyes, ears straining to tune out the Uzumaki. Sakura had screamed when Sasuke had hit a squirrel with a kunai in reaction to movement, but she would get over it. Better to do too much than too little, Sasuke's father always used to say.

"So, Sasuke, you're an Uchiha, right?" Ryusei, the merchant, asked Sasuke, breaking away from his conversation with the Uzumaki. "I don't know much about you shinobi types, but your clan is pretty famous."

Sasuke spared Ryusei an absentmindedly nod, returning quickly to his constant scanning of the trees around them. The road they were walking on was only wide enough for two carts to travel side-by-side, shrouded by Fire Country's distinctive canopy of trees. Anyone could be lurking just out of sight.

"You guys are known for your… eye thingy, right?" Ryusei continued, ignoring Sasuke's lack of interest. "What is it called, the sarangan or something? What does that do anyway? Could you show me? I heard it looks pretty cool, and it's not every day you meet an actually Uchiha."

At this line of questioning, Sasuke finally turned to face the inquisitive merchant. "Our clans _dōjutsu_ , not "eye thingy," is called the Sharingan," Sasuke huffed, glaring at Ryusei with all the bite he could muster, "and no, I can't show you."

"Is it top secret?" Ryusei asked, ever persistent.

"Something like that." Sasuke mumbled in return, flushing as he returned to his survey of the landscape, running ahead of the group.

Ryusei shrugged at the Uchiha's back. "Strange boy. Anyway, Naruto, tell me more about Uzushio. I'd really like to go someday, but your village's security is absurd."

Naruto beamed at the merchant. "Well, Uzushio has the best food in the whole world! There's this one grill-"

* * *

After the fourth hour, Sasuke gave up on his constant vigilance, bored out of his mind. He hung a few strides ahead of the rest of the group, hoping that the distance and "cold shoulder technique" would be enough to ward off questions.

"Sensei, how far do we have till Tanyu?" The Uzumaki asked Kakashi, his tone dull after hours of inactivity.

"Oh, we still have a couple hours of walking left. We should reach the capital at around 6 pm." Kakashi replied absentmindedly.

The Uzumaki's shoulders sagged. "Really? We've been on the road for this long and we still have hours to walk?" The Uzumaki whined, "Can't we tree run? We'd be there in no time."

"Yeah, let's do that." Kakashi answered coyly.

"Really?" The Uzumaki asked suspiciously, hooded lids betraying his lack of confidence.

"Really. We'll take to the trees on the way back to Konoha." Kakashi clarified, turning his smile on the fuming Uzumaki. "The trees are indeed faster, but much easier to plan an ambush in due to the amount of cover. They're not safe to take clients through unless you have a larger squad."

"Fine," Naruto pouted, crossing his arms over his chest in defiance. With that, team seven returned to silence as they continued their trek onwards.

* * *

Sakura's eyes practically bulged as she took in the vistas of Tanyu, its skyscrapers and massive streets a big change from Konoha. The city teemed with people, from the vendors offering their wares to the business men returning home from work to a few homeless people wondering aimlessly. Tanyu held all sorts of people, save one.

"Sensei, where are the shinobi?" Sakura asked, "I mean, I know it's not a ninja village, but the Daimyo lives here. I thought there would be a few more shinobi to keep him safe."

Kakashi shook his head. "Tanyu gets most of its security from the regular military force stationed here. The Daimyo only employs a few shinobi to be his direct guardians; they're mostly just there to protect from assassinations."

"So is that like a long-term mission or something?" Naruto asked, scratching his chin, "How does the Hokage choose who guards the Daimyo?"

"He doesn't," Kakashi flatly replied, "The Daimyo picks out his guardians personally. It's sort of considered a betrayal to leave Konoha to serve the Daimyo directly."

"Why's that?" Naruto demanded, brow furled in confusion, "Aren't the Daimyo and the Hokage on the same team?"

"Yes, they are," Kakashi answered gently, "But not in the way you'd think. The Daimyo is technically the ruler of the Fire country, and he could technically order Konoha to leave the country. But Konoha isn't owned by Fire country; instead, they have a mutually-beneficial alliance. Konoha gets first dibs on missions from the Daimyo and a place to stay; the Daimyo gets a standing military to defend against other nations. That being said, alliances with shinobi are notoriously loose, so the Daimyo has good reason to be wary of us." Kakashi turned to face his team, dodging civilians while walking backwards. "Always be careful how you act around the Daimyo; after an incident he had with his guardians a few years ago, he's been wary of ninja." Kakashi then turned back around, leading the group back into silence.

Finally reaching the high-end district, the team escorted Ryusei to his home, a modest mansion far from the capital building, as modest as mansions can be anyway.

"Thank you for your protection and company," Ryusei told team seven, "You did a stellar job. I'll be sure to ask for your team specifically if I ever need repeat service."

"No problem!" Naruto said, "It was great to meet you!"

After shaking hands, team seven watched to merchants retreating form as he walked back to his house. "Nice job, everyone." Kakashi drawled with enthusiasm rivaling a dead fish. "Let's head back."

Naruto's mouth dropped open in shock. "We're leaving already? Don't we get to stay the night or something? What about dinner?"

"It'd be best to get back to Konoha as soon as possible, and we will have dinner, just on the road. Let's go."

With that, Kakashi led his team out of Tanyu, leaving behind the bright lights and lively crowds for the dusky forest.

* * *

Team Seven moved at a much faster pace on their return trip to Konoha, eating a "dinner" of ration bars on the way as they leapt through the trees. The team settled into a steady pace, moving at three times the speed of they had earlier in the day, Sasuke leading their tree-born march, Kakashi and Sakura taking the middle and Naruto covering the rear. Sasuke's eyes scanned the foliage constantly, straining to see through the shadowy leaves.

"What'd you guys think of Tanyu?" Sakura asked her teammates after a couple of hours of travel.

"It makes Konoha feel like a bunch of backwater huts." Naruto commented, eliciting a snort from his female teammate.

"What about you, Sasuke?" Sakura queried the dark haired boy.

"It was…busy, I guess." Sasuke replied blandly.

"Really, Sasuke? Busy?" Sakura scolded, "You've got such good eyesight and the best you can come up with is, 'busy'?"

"What do you want me to say?" Sasuke huffed, turning midair to face Sakura, face flushed in embarrassment, " _I_ was focus on ou-"

Without warning, Kakashi grabbed Sakura's shirt and pulled her out of the way just in time to take a couple of kunai to the chest, exploding in a ball of fire.

"Kakashi-sensei!" Sakura screamed as she jumped off to the ground, heart beating in her ears as she searched for her teacher, her two teammates dropping from the trees to flank her.

"If you surrender, no one else gets hurt," a sinister voice warned, stepping from the shadows to reveal a tall, barrel-chested man with short, dark hair dressed in green camouflage. "We're not here to kill you, but we won't hesitate to injury you."

"No way! You blow up our sensei and now you expect us to go along peacefully! Screw off!" Naruto shouted, face flushed with anger.

"You may be genin, but surely you know your place in the shinobi world." The man continued, face curling in smile. "I defeated your sensei in a single blow. How could you possibly hope to handle three of us at your level?" From the shadows, two more figures appeared to flank the man: a shorter, lithe female with long, blond hair and a dark skinned man with a platinum-blond buzz cut, dressed in camouflage like the first two with a sword holstered on his back.

"Guys, none of them have hitai-ates," Sakura whispered to her companions, "Do you think they're missing nins?"

"Probably," Sasuke murmured, "They're defiantly ninja. But don't most missing nin still wear hitai-ates?"

Naruto stepped in front of his team and addressed the other group. "If you don't want to kill us, what are you after? Why should we trust you?"

The woman smiled. "Smart kid. Well, the way we figure, a living Uzumaki and Uchiha will fetch a pretty penny on the black market, and small nations are always looking for trained ninja, pink hair." She explained, pulling out a kunai, "No one would mind if you were a little damaged, though."

Sasuke's hand tightened into a fist. "I think we can take them," Sasuke whispered, face curling into a smile, "We can finally have a real test of our strength. Let's go with formation Beta."

Sakura nodded assent and then leapt up into the trees as Sasuke charged the opposing ninja, Naruto directly behind him, making hand seals. Sasuke pulled five shuriken from his pack and hurled them at the opposing group, forcing the tall ninja to jump one way and the other two to jump the other.

"Multi-Shadow Clone Jutsu!" The forest floor flooded with orange ninja, all charging straight toward the enemy.

The big ninja's eye's flashed with surprise as he beheld the torrent of enemy ninja. "Yugito, take care of it!" He shouted to his female teammate.

"On it!" Yugito replied, racing through hand signs, "Fire Release: Fire Dragon Bullet!" Yugito released a large stream of fire from her mouth and swung it in a large swath in from her, forcing Naruto and Sasuke back and eliminating most of the clones.

"None of know any Water release attacks, do we?" Sasuke complained, "How are we going to deal with this fire?" The flames had caught some of the trees on fire, casting an orange glow on the battlefield.

Naruto shook his head. "No, I've got nothing. We're just gonna have to finish this fight quickly." Sasuke nodded before restarting his assault, Naruto once again forming a few clones to support. The darker man raced to intercept them, pulling his sword from his back.

"Back off, Kaede!" Yugito called, holding her position, "I can't use my ninjutsu if you're in the way!"

"It doesn't matter, anyway." Kaede replied over his shoulder, "They're just a bunch of genin anyway; I don't need support. I'll take care of this in no time flat."

"Just let him handle it, Yugito," the leader broke in, "Kaede has energy to burn right now, and I think he can handle this on his own."

Kaede blurred in movement as he dispatched the first of Naruto's clone vanguard in moments. Eye's widening, Sasuke leapt backwards, narrowly avoiding a horizontal slice from the man's sword. Kaede didn't let up, pressing the genin with a flurry of strikes that continually forced Sasuke back. Sasuke pulled a kunai from his pouch to deflect one of the sword strikes, but sword cut through the metal with ease, cutting into Sasuke's shirt but missing his body. Sasuke's retreat was cut short when he backed into a tree, frantically pulling another kunai out as Kaede bore down on him.

Time seemed to slow down as Sasuke watched the diagonally strike coming towards him. Sasuke willed his body to move out of the way, begged his aching leg muscles to lend him the strength to sidestep, but his body couldn't keep up with his mind as he felt the air parting around the sword. Suddenly, Sasuke felt a tug in his gut as time sped back up and he witnessed Naruto being bisected by the enemy shinobi before turning into smoke. Sasuke glanced over at what he presumed to be the real Naruto as he skidded up to the dark-haired genin.

"Whoa…" Naruto breathed out, regarding Sasuke in awe, "Sasuke, your eyes!"

Sasuke stared back at Naruto in confusion before realization dawned on his face, a broad grin evidence of his elation. However, after seeing Kaede turn to face the two genin, Sasuke once again took on a serious visage.

"Naruto, thanks for the assist," Sasuke intoned, "Let's go at it again. Do you think you can keep substituting with me?"

"Yeah, I think so," Naruto replied tentatively, "but I don't know for how long. Timing that is pretty hard. Do you think you can set up the combo?"

"I can," Sasuke affirmed, "I hope Sakura's ready." At this, Sasuke charged the enemy, pulling out another kunai. The two ninja blurred in movement, Kaede using his superior speed to pressure the genin with a whirlwind of strikes, Sasuke relying on his newly awakened Sharingan to predict Kaede's movements. Kaede took a step back without warning and returned with a quick stab, plunging his sword into the clone that had just replaced Sasuke. The two continued this death dance for another minute, clones lending their support to Sasuke.

"I'm impressed," Kaede said, not pausing in his onslaught to regard Sasuke, "Surviving this long is pretty good for a genin. You still can't beat me. How do you expect to win if all you do is dodge?"

Sasuke didn't reply, face blank in concentration as sweat poured down his nose. His eyes darted to the side for a moment, and then Sasuke pulled back abruptly, once again retreating.

"Oh no you don't!" Kaede yelled as he charged the genin, putting on a burst of speed to instantly close the gap.

"Earth Release! Headhunter Jutsu!" A voice called as two hands burst from the ground under Kaede. The man's eyes widened as he saw Sasuke stop his flight and pull out a kunai just as Naruto approached from Kaede's back.

"Nice try, but you're underestimating me if you think that's enough," Kaede boasted as, in a feat amazing agility, he shuffled to his right side, dodging the two boys and Sakura's grasping hands. "It'll take more than tha-"

"Kai!" Naruto shouted as he made a hand sign.

Kaede froze in place, mouth open mid-exclamation. Capitalizing on the situation, Sasuke raced through hand seals.

"Fire Release: Great Fireball Jutsu!" Sasuke called as he released the fireball from his mouth, burning Kaede alive where he stood. When the fireball died down, all that remained was a charred corpse, bits of bone visible at the primary point of contact.

"Welcome to Fire Country, man." Naruto taunted halfheartedly, grimly taking in Kaede's cadaver with his team mates. "Nice job with the genjutsu, Sakura."

Sakura didn't even register her teammate's compliment as she stared at the corpse.

"Kaede!" Yugito screamed before turning to face Juro, "You did this! Why didn't you let me help him?"

Juro ignored Yugito, instead turning to the genin team with a visage of cold wrath. "No more games," Juro intoned, marching towards team seven, "We're taking you all in pieces."

"Alright, we can take these two as well." Sasuke assured, single tomoe spinning in each eye, "I'll take the big guy, Naruto, you get the girl. Sakura, you support us with our genjutsu." The two nodded, Sakura leaping in the trees as Sasuke and Sakura moved to attack.

"Oh no you don't, little squirrel," Yugito growled darkly, rushing through hand signs, "You're not going to be sneaking though the trees this time. Fire Release: Fire Dragon Bullet!" Yugito spewed a torrent of flames from her mouth, blanketing the tree Sakura had tried to escape into, causing the girl to vault to ground level. The flames ignited nearby trees, kicking up heat around the battle. Sakura, no longer concealed, moved to intercept Yugito with Naruto.

Meanwhile, Sasuke pulled a kunai from his pouch as he engaged Juro. Sasuke tried to get a read on him with his Sharingan, but the man charged the genin without any tricks, drawing no weapon and making no hand signs. Confused, Sasuke swiped his kunai at Juro's neck only to sidestep as Juro easily ducked the strike and swung a massive fist in a haymaker. Seeing an opening, Sasuke brought his kunai down in a stab at Juro's arm, but once again the man used his superior speed to yank his arm back and leap at Sasuke. Caught off guard, Sasuke used the momentum from his missed downwards strike to front flip into an ax kick aimed at Juro's head. Instead of dodging, Juro caught Sasuke's kick, completely absorbing the impact. Juro reared back and pitched Sasuke like a spare shuriken, causing the genin to tumble head over foot until he collided with a tree.

Sasuke shook his head, forcing his eyes open to face Juro. His body felt like it had lost a fight with a mountain, but he still tried to force himself up, his legs giving out as soon as he put weight on them. Giving up on moving, Sasuke threw together hand signs as Juro bore down on him, arm cocked back for a punch.

"Fire Release: Grand Fireball!" Sasuke yelled as he tried to channel the chakra to his family's signature technique only to come up empty, pain jolting through his body as he tried to force up enough chakra. Once again, time slowed as Sasuke watched Juro's furious charge. He saw the man's muscles ripple in strength, face a mask of cold fury. This time, Naruto couldn't bail his teammate out. Sasuke had caught a glimpse of Naruto and Sakura weaving around Yugito's assault as the woman added to the festering forest fire with more fire techniques. Sasuke knelt petrified as he watched Juro's blow, aware of the sweat dripping down his face, the breakneck tattoo of his heart playing an upbeat dirge.

Out of the corner of Sasuke's eye, a figure raced into the scene, stopping Juro mid blow by grabbing his arm.

"Sorry I'm late, Sasuke. I got lost on the road of life," Kakashi intoned, two eyes humorless as he regard his opponent. A jolt of electricity jumped from Kakashi's hand up Juro's arm, forcing the large man into a frantic backpedal. Kakashi scooped Sasuke under one arm, jumping over to where Naruto and Sakura fought. Kakashi set Sasuke down before racing through hand signs.

"Water Release: Gunshot!" Kakashi cried, firing a water bullet at Yugito, catching her off guard and knocking her into a nearby tree.

"Excellent job so far, team seven," Kakashi praised, pride showing through his grim expression, "but I'll take it from here. You three head for the Konoha border as fast as possible and flag down a border patrol. I'll hold these three off."

Sakura's face scrunched up in confusion. "Three?"

Kakashi nodded. "That's where I've been this whole time. I knew these three must have a fourth teammate if they were brave enough to attack a jonin." Nearby, another dark skinned man emerged from the shadows and helped Yugito to a shaky stance. "Naruto, Sasuke can't run; you're going to have to carry him, and fast too. I won't be able to keep all of them from chasing you."

Sasuke struggled to a standing position, nearly toppling over. "I don't need Uzumaki to carry me," Sasuke spat, "I can handle it!"

"Sasuke," Naruto growled, voice growing husky, "You have to trust me. You know you can't run by yourself." The two boys stared each other down, spinning tomoe meeting turbulent blues. After a moment, Sasuke relented, nearly collapsing as he nodded to his teammate. Naruto lifted Sasuke onto his back, whiskers in his face elongating and deepening. "Sakura, let's go," Naruto murmured, leaping off towards Konoha.

Kakashi faced the assembled team of three before him. "Yugito, you're not fit to chase them," the third team member, apparently the leader, commented, "So Juro, you chase down the genin. Don't let them reach the village." Juro nodded and leapt after the genin. "Yugito, that leaves us to face Kakashi. He's not a legendary ninja for nothing; stay on your toes."

Taking his cue, Kakashi rushed the two, flames of the forest lighting their clash.

* * *

Sakura heaved for air as she struggled to keep up with Naruto in their breakneck escape. Rain drenched her clothes and her legs ached, but Sakura knew that she couldn't afford to slow down. She had looked back a few times earlier, seeing the evidence of her sensei's fight by the flames shooting up into the sky. She had also seen her pursier gaining on her. Seeing this, Naruto had scooped her up in a burst of strength and speed Sakura hadn't known he possessed. After a building up a lead, Naruto had put her down and they returned to their normal speed. Now, with Konoha in view, Sakura begged her body for enough strength to finish their escape.

Ahead of Sakura, Naruto came to a full stop, growling at a figure who'd appeared in his path. Sakura noted the rodent-shaped mask on the man, making him an ANBU agent. Naruto started to pull a kunai from his pouch only to be stopped by his teammate.

"Naruto! He's an ANBU agent," Sakura warned, "He's from Konoha!"

"Genin Uzumaki, genin Uchiha, genin Haruno," the ANBU agent droned, mask and tone masking all emotion, "We'll handle this from here. These agents will escort you back to Konoha." A trio of ANBU appeared, surrounding the genin.

"What about our sensei?" Sakura asked, wide green eyes brimming with tears.

"I'll assist him personally," the ANBU agent replied with a little heat behind his voice.

The remaining ANBU agents took that as their cue, motioning to the genin to move out. One took Sasuke's limp form from Naruto; the dark-haired boy had passed out during their flight. With one final glance towards where her sensei fought, Sakura leapt to the trees once again, heading home.

* * *

Sasuke awoke slowly, his body feeling as if his muscles had gone on strike. Words floated around in a cloud, familiar voices conversing. His mind reach forth to grab the words, to comprehend where he was, but to no avail. Sasuke eased his eyes open only to find that they were covered, leaving him in the dark. After a few moments of silent panic, Sasuke put all of his effort towards speaking.

"Where a-am I?" Sasuke rasped before breaking into a fit of coughing.

"-suke! Don't try to speak!" Sakura warned, her words trickling into Sasuke's brain as his ears finally unclogged.

"Sasuke, I'm going to remove your mask. You may want to close your eyes; it's quite bright in here," advised a foreign voice. Sasuke acquiesced, closing his eyes as a hand lifted the mask off of him, exposing him to a muted light. Sasuke steeled himself and then opened his eyes, recoiling at the clinical light that flooded his view. After a moment, his vision cleared, revealing Kakashi's worried eye, Sakura's frantic expression, Naruto's glare that poorly hid concern and Itachi warm smile.

"Welcome back, little brother," Itachi said gently, "It seems you've had your first real mission."

Another figure, clothed in scrubs, walked into Sasuke's view, handing the boy a glass of water with a stern expression. "Drink up and don't try to speak," the man began, "You're in the Konoha general; you've suffered some minor injuries and moderate chakra exhaustion from you fight and the activation of you Sharingan, but you'll be fine. Don't try to talk." Apparently done with his spiel, the man turned and stalked out of the room.

"The doctor said you'll be discharged tomorrow morning," Itachi explained. "I'll take you home, but you'll be on bed rest."

"I've already been debriefed by the Hokage," Kakashi broke in, "and you'll be happy to know that all of our assailants have been dealt with. Given that we faced several chūnin level ninja, our mission has been upgraded to a B rank. I'm giving all three of you two days off to recover; rest and meet me at the usual place at the usual time three days from now." Kakashi regarded his team with a shaky smile before continuing, "You three did an excellent job; we'll discuss it more we meet again." Kakashi made for the door, motioning for his genin to follow.

* * *

 **CHAPTER END**

* * *

 _ **For your eyes only**_. _**Sharing of this information without prior consent from a superior will result in your immediate expulsion from the ANBU core, with further punishments to be levied at the discretion of the Hokage.**_

Greeting and welcome to the ANBU black ops, primary corps, of Konohagakure. If you made it this far, congratulations; you have the honor of being hand-picked by the Hokage to serve him. You have been provided with information regarding conduct, formations and techniques unique to ANBU; this document will inform you of some history of Konoha necessary to your actions as an ANBU member.

This history has to do with some of the more volatile times in Konoha's timeline. Some of these events will give you context to the current shinobi world while others will impact how you do your job.

Without further ado, let us begin.

-Orochimaru of the Sannin, "The Secret Histories of Konoha: Introduction."

* * *

 **Jutsu List:**

|Technique Name: Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu | Type: Ninjutsu | Rank: A | Description: A Kinjutsu, the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu is a larger version of the Shadow Clone Jutsu that creates many more clones at a single time, of course at greater chakra cost. To be specific, the Multiple version of the technique is need when creating one hundred or more clones, as that is where the original caps out. This technique was classified as a Kinjutsu for both its enormous chakra and the mental strain associated with that many clones being destroyed.

|Technique Name: Fire Release: Fire Dragon Bullet | Type: Ninjutsu | Rank: C | Description: The user molds fire chakra in their body before releasing it through the mouth in a constant stream. The fire released will vary in heat based upon the skill of the user and the chakra used. Of note, this jutsu does not have the concussive force of some other jutsu like the Grand Fireball; it is just a stream of fire.

 **Terms:**

Dōjutsu (doh-joots-oo): Ocular or visual techniques. Generally reserved to specific bloodlines, like the Sharingan for the Uchiha and the Byakugan for the Hyuuga. These techniques are generally very powerful and coveted by the ninja villages. Konoha's possession of the two most well-known dōjutsu, the Sharingan and the Byakugan, is one major reason for the position as the top ninja village.

Kinjutsu: Forbidden techniques. This title is somewhat of a misnomer because some forbidden techniques can be used without consequence, but in general, Kinjutsu refers to techniques that cannot be taught, or in some cases even used, do to their nature. Some are forbidden for their potential for self-harm, like the Multiple Shadow Clone Jutsu, which uses so much chakra that it is dangerous for most ninja, and some are forbidden for being too destructive or to inhumane.

* * *

 **Author's Note: Yo! Once again, this chapter ended up way longer than expected. I thought about cutting it in half, but I'm not a big fan of pointless cliffhangers.**

 **I would like to once again thank you for reading this story. Yes, I'm talking to you. If you like the story, have something to comment on or would like to share why you** _ **don't**_ **like the story, please leave a review. I read and appreciate every one.**

 **EDIT: Sorry for anyone who read this when it was first uploaded; somehow, I managed to upload a document that was a mixture of my second and final drafts, so it made no sense at all. This time it doesn't look like gibberish.**

 **See ya next time!**

 **-Salty Lightning**


	4. Chapter 4: What does the C stand for?

**Sunset of the Uzumaki: Chapter 4: What does the C stand for?**

* * *

"Report."

"Hokage-sama. The assailants have all been recovered, but they have all expired."

"What? I ordered you to take them alive?"

"Hokage-sama. When the ANBU agents arrived to support me, the enemy leader activated a seal that killed all remaining hostiles."

"Thank you for clarifying, Kakashi. Ibiki, report."

"Hokage-sama. My department has run autopsies on all four corpses. Aside from the one that the genin took care of, all three of the ninja were killed by a seal attached to their heads that literally scrambled their brains. As such, only faint readings could be taking from their brains, and we could not decipher any thoughts."

"Interesting. Inoichi, report."

"Hokage-sama. My team and I have done some research based on the bodies and the names we got from the genin team. It looks like the three of them are Kumo missing-nin. Our initial investigation places their departure from Kumo at three months ago, although we trying to get our contacts in that village to confirm. The leader, Nobu Shota, was a jonin before his defection. The other three members, Kaede Shun, Juro Ryuu and Yugito Nii, were all chūnin and members of his team. We have yet to find a connection between them and any other ninja group, be it a village or other missing-nin."

"If I may, Hokage-sama."

"Please, feel free to speak, honored councilor Shimura."

"We have two reasons to believe that these four ninja acted for Kumo. First, they acted in Fire country. As a jonin, this Nobu would be wary of steering so close to Konoha given our higher level of security following the Hyuuga incident. The value of an Uchiha and an Uzumaki is not worth the danger of facing a legendary jonin in a hostile nation for any sane missing-nin, and with a team of four, they could have afforded to take any number of safer missions in less policed states. Secondly, the seals. Suicide seals make no sense on missing-nin. They'd much rather flee if one of their members is captured instead of allowing the leader to kill them at will. These ninja are not just missing-nin; Kumo is after the Uzumaki and the Uchiha."

"Your analysis is both chilling and likely accurate. While we should avoid direct action so as not to cause a stir, we must prepare for future action from Kumo."

"Would you like me to inquire about the matter, Hokage-sama?"

"No, honored councilor, I have someone who would be perfect for this job. Kakashi, I want you to keep your team on high alert for future attacks. Dismissed!"

* * *

Naruto couldn't stop looking at Hinata, and he couldn't figure out why.

It wasn't just that she was cute; sure, she was, but Naruto thought Sakura was pretty cute, too, and he didn't stare at her all day. There was just something about Hinata that was strangely familiar, like he had met her before. At the same time, even as he studied her, something in him warned him to stay away, which seemed wrong to Naruto. Hinata couldn't be a threat, at least not more of a threat than any other Kunoichi. _Does she look like someone I know?_ Thought Naruto, _there's no one in Uzushio wit-_

"Oy, Uzumaki, you wanna stop ogling Hinata? What, do they breed creeps in your clan?" Kiba jeered, yanking Naruto out of his reverie.

"Hey! Don't bring my clan into this!" Naruto threatened, turning bright red at the boy's accusation. "I was just spacing out!"

"It's ok, Kiba." Hinata said quietly, soft smile offset by the nervous finger gesture she was using. "I don't mind. There's no need to insult Naruto that way."

"Don't stick up for him, Hinata! First they brag about their C rank and then this guy turns out to be a genuine perv!" Kiba shouted before turning to Naruto. "I'll fight you right here, right now, sunshine."

Naruto started to get riled up before he regarded Kiba with a coy smile. "Fine. Let's go outside; first person to wrestle the other to the ground wins."

"Naruto! What are you doing?" Sakura scolded. "Kiba always picks fights, but he doesn't really mean it. Let's just finish eating, ok?"

"Sorry, Sakura, but I can't let that happen," Kiba apologized. "I'll _never_ back down from a challenge, least of all from a foreigner who thinks he can do as he pleases. Don't worry, I'll make it quick."  
"We should let this battle happen," Shino, Kiba's male teammate, began, "Why? Because Kiba speaks the truth. He does not back down from a fight. And the fight will be quick. Why? Because Kiba fights recklessly, causing most of his fights to be quick."

Naruto eyed Shino for a moment before shaking his head. Laying money down at the table, Naruto got up and started to make his way to the door before Hinata stopped him, grabbing his sleeve.

"Naruto, there's no need for a fight," Hinata insisted, "I'm not offended and Kiba's just riled up."

Naruto shot Hinata a blazing smile. "Thanks' Hinata, but I'm going to prove that this dog has more bark than bite."

Sakura sighed as she also got up, placing down some money. "That was just embarrassing, Naruto," Sakura chastised. "I know you have better material than that. If you're really going to fight, I'd better come out too."

* * *

In the end, both teams ended up coming outside to spectate the fight, standing just outside of Ichiraku's. Naruto cracked his knuckles as he watched Kiba handing off his sleeping dog to his teammate. "Got any last words before I shut your mouth for good?" Naruto taunted.

"I'm surprised you could make it in whirlpool country," Kiba commented. "With those whiskers, how'd you deal with all the water? It doesn't really matter; everyone knows that a cat's doomed when faced with a-"

"Get on with it!" Sakura shouted. "You don't have to trade crappy insults all day first!"

"Fine, fine," Naruto placated, holding up his hands. "I was just getting into the mood."  
Naruto glanced over at Kiba, but something caught his eye from behind the boy. Naruto's eyes widened as he saw a few familiar figures walking towards past Kiba. It had only been a few days since Naruto had met team ten, but the differences were shocking. Gone was the defiant look on Ino's face, the aura of boredom radiating off of Shikamaru and the carefree expression of Choji. Instead, Naruto saw Ino's blank stare, Choji cradling a bandaged arm and Shikamaru's grave expression, one eye covered by an eyepatch.

"Ino, what the hell happened?" Sakura demanded as she grabbed the blond girl's hands.

Ino shrugged Sakura's hands off and hung her head, stalking off toward the Hokage tower.

"Our mission didn't go so well," Choji offered cheerlessly. "We faced some ninja we couldn't handle."

"Are you all ok?" Sakura asked, concern filling her eyes.

"Not exactly," supplied a burly, bearded man, coming up from behind Shikamaru and Choji. Sakura started to inquire further, but stopped when the man continued towards the Hokage tower, uneven step revealing a bandaged stump where his right arm should have been. Shikamaru and Choji turned and followed the man.

The remaining genin stayed silent for a while, watching the retreating forms of Team Ten.

"Well, Sakura and I have to go meet Sasuke," Naruto muttered, all fight gone from his voice. "We'll have to have that fight later, Kiba."

* * *

The trip through the Uchiha compound to visit Sasuke disturbed Sakura. She had visited before to shop or have a meal. On those visits, the Uchiha had been kind and inviting, especially after learning that she was training to be a ninja. Now, though, as Itachi lead Naruto and Sakura to his home, the Uchiha observed the genin's trip as if watching an executioner. All Sakura could see around her was a wall of scorching stares and harsh whispers. Itachi greeted his clansman as he passed, but the only response he got was a betrayed look from one old man. Itachi pointed out different features of the Uchiha district to the genin as if he was oblivious to the reception. Before long, the trio reached a larger house on the edges of the compound emblazoned with a large Uchiha fan.

Itachi eased the door open, taking off his sandals and moving up the stairs in one fluid movement. The genin followed him in silences, eyes darting around to take in the décor. The home held a few low couches and little decoration. As Itachi lead his guests up the stairs, Naruto noticed the Uchiha fans on the walls and nothing else. Itachi walk down a narrow hallway, guiding the group past a few closed doors. Reaching a door at the end of the hall, Itachi rapped his hand on the door and then waited.

"Who is it?" rasped a voice.

"Your teammates are here to see you, Sasuke," Itachi called in. After a moment of silence, Itachi opened the door and ushered Naruto and Sakura in, smiling before closing the door and leaving. Naruto and Sakura shuffled into the room, taking in the assorted ninja tools and plain furniture that Sasuke kept in his room. Naruto glanced at the pictures on the dresser. One showed Sasuke holding his hitai-ate, Itachi and a woman who looked identical to the brothers. Naruto guessed that it was a graduation photo. The second picture portrayed a younger Sasuke riding on the back of a younger Itachi. The final photo wasn't photo at all. Instead, the classic-style family portrait feature Sasuke, Itachi, their mother and a man, presumably Sasuke's father, all sporting similar grave expressions. Naruto picked up the photo, looking into the eyes of the depicted Sasuke; his young, serious expression look a lot like his current facial expression: stern, but tired.

"You didn't come all the way here to stare at my photo's, did you Naruto?" Sasuke croaked, "If so, I'm going to have to ask you to leave."

Sakura smiled as Naruto put the portrait down. "Hey, Sasuke," Sakura began, "How are you doing? You feel any better?"

"Yeah, I feel better. I can actually move again," Sasuke rasped, reaching for a glass of water from his end table "I didn't sustain anything serious, just chakra exhaustion. I should be up and moving tomorrow."

"Good, 'cause we can't let your slow behind slow us down," Naruto teased, almost causing Sasuke to spit out his water. "After a mission like yesterday, I think we need to train." At that, all three genin grew serious. "We did do pretty good. I mean, we got that one guy with our formation. What was his name, Katy? Kade? K-"

"Kaede. His name was Kaede," Sasuke broke in, covering one eye while staring off into space. After a moment, Sasuke put his hand down, regarding his teammates with wide eyes. "We really killed him, didn't we? God, I didn't think it'd be like this."

Sakura crept up to the bed and reached for Sasuke's hand only for him to recoil. "Sasuke, it's ok. We talked about this in the academy. Your first kill is supposed to be really hard. They say to try not to think ab-"

"I can't stop thinking about it," Sasuke blurted, once again focusing his eyes on his blanket. "The Sharingan, it keeps playing it for me over and over again. I can see his fear, see the heat melt his skin. _Melt it_. Hell, I can smell his flesh burning, I can taste it in my mouth." Sasuke's gaze jolted to his team, his twin tomoe paralyzing them. "Was it worth it?"

*SMACK*

Naruto drilled Sasuke with a hard look as the dark-haired boy rubbed his cheek. "Of course it was worth it, Sasuke! What's wrong with you?" Naruto shouted, grabbing Sasuke's shoulders and shaking them, "You fulfilled the mission! If you didn't kill him, we were all dead! Get a hold of yourself."

Sasuke's head dropped in shame as he brushed off Naruto's hands. After a few moments of silence, Sasuke lifted his gaze to meet Naruto's, blue eye's meeting black. "Thanks, Naruto," Sasuke breathed, deflating back onto his futon, "You're right."

Sakura breathed a sigh of relief. "Sasuke, you should talk to Itachi about this; I'm sure he can help with the Sharingan thing," Sakura suggested. Sasuke nodded as the room lapsed into silence.

"Well, at least we know what level we're at now," Sakura commented, "So we know how much we need to improve."

"What we need to do is beat Kakashi," Naruto corrected. "The sooner we do that, the sooner we can pick up new techniques."

Sakura palmed her chin. "You Status Seal seemed to work well. We could try the same setup that we used on… that we used yesterday."

Sasuke shook his head. "That won't work on Kakashi. It only worked on Kaede because he wasn't expecting Sakura's genjutsu or Naruto's seals," Sasuke explained. "Kakashi's prepared for both of them."

"We could learn more seals or genjutsu," Naruto suggested. "That way we could surprise Kakashi. We only need to win once."

"You misunderstand what I'm saying," Sasuke huffed, "It's not that we can't use new seals or genjutsu or even more Fire Release jutsu on Kakashi; it's that he knows what to expect from each of us. If we ever want a chance of beating him, we have to mix it up." Sasuke paused for a moment, face frozen in thought. "Naruto, you don't know many ninjutsu, do you? Do you know anything beyond the basic ones and Shadow Clones?"

Naruto shook his head in response. "No, I don't. I left before my mom taught me anything else."

Sakura perked up. "I've got it! Don't the Uchiha have the largest jutsu library in Konoha?" Sakura asked, waiting for Sasuke's nod to continue, "Well then, couldn't we learn some jutsu from your library to help out."

"I don't think so," Sasuke replied with a frown, "at least not without approval from a council member. Tell you what: I'll ask Itachi; he's a council member. If he approves we'll see about what we can do."

"Sounds good," Sakura confirmed. "Well, you'd better get your rest. Get well Sasuke! Don't forget to ask Itachi about you know what."

Sasuke nodded with a smile as Naruto and Sakura made their way out of his room. Naruto paused in the doorway. "Sasuke, you're coming to a team lunch tomorrow. Noon. Yakiniku Q."

"Whatever. Get out of here, Uzumaki," Sasuke conceded, shooting Naruto a smirk as the boy left the room.

* * *

Team seven assembled in front of the Hokage's desk two days later, all looking rested once again.

"I would like to congratulate you four once again for you excellent work on your mission," the Hokage praised. "I understand that such a mission may be traumatic, especially as a first C rank. Would you feel comfortable doing more C ranks?"  
Naruto glanced at his team before answering. "Hokage-sama, I think we're ready." His teammates underscored this statement with a nod.

"Good, good," the Hokage sighed in relief, "I was hoping that this mission didn't scare you away from C ranks for good. Let me be frank with you, team seven. Your team has a unique position; having both an Uzumaki and an Uchiha gives you an innate advantage and makes you look stronger on paper." The Sandaime regarded the team before continuing. "I intend to use that to the fullest. If you have noticed, a lot of missions so far, even if they were just D ranks put you in the public eye. You trip to the capital looks good on your record, too. I plan on putting your team in the chūnin exams as Konoha's 'ringer.' To really maximize your effectiveness in the exams, I'm going put your team through more than I usually would. I'm going to assign you a series of C ranks to pad you records and build you skills so that you can perform well in the exams and bring glory to Konoha. Do you think you can handle it?"

None of the genin waited before nodding.

"I wouldn't have expected anything else. Your next C rank is already at the mission desk: good luck. Team seven dismissed."

* * *

"Your mission today, team seven, is to take this missive to Tanzaku-gai-guy, where you will give it to a courier stationed there. The route should be clear, but beware of bandits. Any questions?"

* * *

Sasuke's eyes skimmed each side of the road, his ears peeled for any sound of attack. The boy even periodically flared his Sharingan just for insurance. During his latest flare, he spotted something out of the corner of his eye, spinning midair to throw a kunai. All four shinobi changed direction, bounding over to Sasuke target to find a skewered squirrel.

"While I appreciate your vigilance, you might be a little too jumpy, Sasuke," Kakashi scolded.

"We trust you, Sasuke," Sakura reassured, pinning him with a sympathetic smile.

Sasuke nodded and took off again, trying to shake the images of the ambush from his head.

* * *

Sakura tried to ignore the sights and sound of Tanzaku-gai-Guy, focusing on picking out potential enemies in the crowd. After Tanyu, the city, while large, didn't impress Sakura too much anyway. Sakura observed the crowds of tourists visiting street vendors, restaurants and casinos. They formed a faceless mob that would be great for hiding assailants. Glancing over at her team, Sakura noticed that even Naruto looked serious.

Sakura did quirk her eyebrows a little as the team strayed into the red light district. Unlike the rest of the town, this section held a decent number of shinobi, all with Konoha headbands. Kakashi, at the head of team, changed streets at random, nearly colliding with several people. Finally, after a half dozen of these unplanned detours, Kakashi ducked into a seedy building, walking directly to its dirty bar and taking a seat. Sakura tentatively sat next to him, surprised that no one questioned a couple of young people taking a seat.

"No alcohol for you three," Kakashi drawled, fixing his team with a stare. "We're on business, and I don't know if you three can handle you liquor." Kakashi then waved over a bar tender and ordered a drink. "Now, our contact knows to meet us here. _Don't_ look for him; just have a water or something and look inconspicuous."

"Right, a couple of kids hanging out at a seedy bar looks _real_ inconspicuous," Naruto quipped.

"You're right," Kakashi affirmed with a smile. "You three are technically adults; sensei take their genin out drinking all the time." Kakashi downed the rest of his drink before standing.

"Wait, where are you going?" Sakura asked.

"I'm going to case the place. We wouldn't want to be ambushed again, would we?" Kakashi replied with a smile. "You three will meet with the contact and deliver the package. When you're done, wait a little bit and then leave the bar. I'll meet up with you three when you get outside of Tanzaku-gai-guy." Kakashi then stalked off before any of his students could question him.

* * *

"You're fine now, aren't you?" Kakashi questioned.

"Yeah, but what kind of sensei leaves his team to handle a mission like that solo!" Naruto complained. "It took us almost five minutes just to convince the courier that we were the right team."

"We had a tail when we left as well," Sasuke added. "It took us an hour to lose him."

"How'd you do that, anyway?" Kakashi queried.

"Well, first we tried the tactics they gave us in the academy," Sakura supplied, "but those didn't work at all. Then I came up with the idea of using Naruto's clones and a Henge."

"Ah, I see. So did you send out the Henged team first and then go after them?" Kakashi hypothesized.

"Nope! We did the opposite!" Naruto chimed in. "We went first. Anyone as smart as the guy following us would follow the second team. After all, my Henge is really good."

"That explains how you three got away from me," Kakashi gasped, "I followed the second team."

Kakashi had to sprint to avoid his student's wrath.

* * *

"Great job, team seven," the Hokage praised. "You completed the mission efficiently and without interference. How'd you feel about this mission?"

"It was pretty easy," Sakura offered. "At least compared to our last one."

"Well I'm glad to hear it," The Sandaime replied. "Take tomorrow off and report to the missions desk the following day to take your next C rank. Dismissed."

As the team filed out of the Hokage's office, Kakashi addressed his students. "Meet up tomorrow at the usual time and place. We'll do some more training."

* * *

Sasuke's Sharingan whirled as he faced Kakashi, their limbs a blur in complex taijustu. Sasuke deflected two blows to the gut only to find Kakashi's fist hurling towards his face. A moment later, Sasuke found himself a distance away as Naruto's clone got its lights punched out. A panting Sasuke nodded to his teammate before charging back in.

As Sasuke reached Kakashi, he felt a pull in his gut as he switch places with Naruto. Sasuke rushed through hand signs, watching as Kakashi pelted Naruto with blows. The blond's taijustu wasn't quite good enough to handle Kakashi and he had no dōjutsu to compensate.

"Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon!" Sasuke called as he launched a fire dragon at Kakashi. Sasuke watched as Naruto substituted with a clone and Kakashi tried in vain to block the flames before being consumed instantly. Unfazed, Sasuke searched the clearing for his sensei, panting from the chakra needed from his last techniques.

"I appreciate that you're taking this seriously, Sasuke, but I know you can do better than that."

Sasuke found himself staring at the sky, Sharingan focusing on the birds above. _Next time_ , Sasuke thought as he blacked out.

* * *

"There are reports of bear attacks in Nishiura village," the chūnin at the assignment desk droned to team seven. "Your mission is to pacify the bears in the surrounding forest."

"What do you mean by 'pacify'?" Sakura asked.

"It's up to you. You'll probably kill them, but if you can come up with an alternate solution, be my guest."

* * *

"They're just… sitting there."

"Ah, good point. Makes it easier to kill them, then."

Sakura blanched at her teacher's comment. Team seven crouched in trees overlooking what could only be described as an encampment of black bears. Dozens of the animals lounged about, some sleeping, some eating stolen food. None of them, not large or small, did much of anything.

"Let's get to it," Kakashi pressed, pulling a kunai. "The sooner we finish here, the sooner we can head back."  
"Can't we put them under a genjutsu?" Sakura questioned. "They can't control their chakra, so theoretically the genjutsu would never wear off."

"Until the chakra powering it runs out," Kakashi countered. "Anyway, killing these bears will be a valuable experience for you three.

"Sakura, we killed a _man_ last mission," Sasuke broke in, fixing the girl with a hard stare.

Sakura pulled her eyes away from Sasuke in shame, pulling out a kunai and leading the charge.

* * *

"Excellent work, team seven. Nishiura's village elders speak highly of your professionalism and efficiency. Keep up the good work."

"Thank you, Hokage-sama," Sakura intoned, bowing before filing out of the Hokage's office with the rest of her team.

* * *

Naruto concentrated on the delicate dance that his sensei and teammates partook in, waiting for his chance to enact the plan. This time would be different; they had caught Kakashi off guard by charging him all at once, abandoning their complicated formations for a brawl. At least that's what Kakashi must have thought. The Naruto fighting with his team was nothing but a clone, an understudy until Naruto joined the fight for real.

Sasuke feigned a sweep, causing Kakashi to take a step back. Sasuke tried to intercept his sensei with a roundhouse, but the man slapped the boy's leg away. Naruto's clone tried to catch his sensei off guard with an axe kick, but Kakashi just grabbed the clone's thigh, absorbing most of the impact. Seeing an opportunity, Sakura rushed forward, fist rocketing for Kakashi's chest unprotected chest. As Kakashi dropped Naruto's clone and rallied his arms for a block, Naruto performed a quick substitution with Sakura, shooting out his right hand.

"Kai!" Naruto yelled, activating a Flashbang seal and blinding Kakashi. Sasuke seized the opportunity, snatching the bell from Kakashi.

"HAH! Take that, sensei!" Naruto shouted, pumping both of his arms in victory.

"Nice work," Kakashi chuckled, opening his eyes and smiling at Naruto, "but you're not the only one who can bend the rules a little, Naruto."

Naruto started as he sunk into the ground, his teammates following suit.

"Great, genjutsu."

* * *

Sasuke and Sakura approached Itachi, the older Uchiha lounging on his patio, peering into a small pond.

"Well, Itachi," Sasuke began, "Did you ask the council?"

"I did," Itachi replied, tossing a pebble into the pond.

"And?"

"Sit, Sasuke, Sakura," Itachi chided, motioning to the patio beside him. "There's no need to rush."

Sasuke rolled his eyes as he took his seat. "Well, what did they say? I'm really too old for you to keep playing this game, Itachi."

"It's not a game, Sasuke," Itachi corrected, "I'm trying to teach you a little patience. The council agreed to give Sakura partial access to the Uchiha library."

Sakura beamed. "Thank you so much, Itachi!"

Itachi shook his head. "Don't thank me yet. They agreed to let you access the D-rank jutsu and Bukijutsu sections, so nothing fancy."

"What?" Sasuke burst out, jumping to his feet, "Itachi, that's absurd! That's barely even useful."

"It's the best I can do, Sasuke," Itachi explained. "My position on the Uchiha council isn't strong; I am the youngest member, after all. Ninja have made due with less than a compendium of low-level techniques from around the globe. Sakura can visit the library any time, assuming either you or I is with her."

"It's fine, Sasuke," Sakura assured, "It stinks, but it's better than nothing."

Sighing, Sasuke sank back to his seat, stewing for a moment. "Alright. What about Naruto?"

Itachi shook his head once again, tossing another pebble into the pond. "They flatly refused, as we expected. 'The Uzumaki have taken enough from us already!' Akachi always did have a taste for theatrics."

"I expected as much," Sasuke admitted. "Let's go, Sakura. We'll see if there's anything valuable in the beginners section some other time."

* * *

Naruto had begged off from going with his teammates. He figured there was no way that the Uchiha would let him into their library, so the time would be better spent elsewhere. Naruto drifted through the streets of Konoha, greeting villagers when they spoke to him, taking in the scenes. After a few months of having him around, the villagers had calmed a little when it came to seeing Naruto, some even striking up small talk. Likewise, Naruto had warmed up to the village. Sure, it wasn't Uzushio, and Naruto doubted that he'd get used to the size, but something about Konoha just felt right to the blond. The trees surrounding and garnishing the village lent color and smell to the village, the Hokage monument watching over the village, the ninja running to missions or enjoying time off, all of it swam around Naruto, filling him with a sense of home. Just not as much of a home as Uzushio.

As his walks often did, Naruto's trip took him past the clan compounds. Some, like the Hyūga compound, had walls so high that all one could see was their clan crest. Naruto preferred the ones like the one he was passing, the Yamanaka, because they were open, inviting, almost to say that the clan was nothing more than a piece of Konoha itself. It reminded Naruto of Uzushio; the Uzumaki didn't have a clan compound, they just lived in the village with everyone else. Now Naruto could see an older couple walking into their homes and a young Kunoichi training, her short, platinum-blond hair bobbing as she attacked a dummy with a kata. Naruto considered approaching her, but her intense expression told him otherwise.

Naruto paused as he passed the Uzumaki clan compound, but he figured there was no use in visiting today. While it was called a compound, the Uzumaki clan compound was more of an embassy. Only a few Uzumaki lived there year round. The ones who did acted as messengers, informing the Uzumaki in Uzushio of goings on in Konoha and vice versa. Naruto had visited a few times, but he didn't have much in common with the people who worked there; they were more clerks than they were shinobi.

Reaching his apartment, Naruto prepared a cup of ramen, thinking while he waited for it to heat up. _I could train some more today_ , Naruto thought, _but there's not much point. I already know I the seals I was learning in Uzushio like the back of my hand now._ As he munch on his ramen, Naruto decided to read one of books that Jiraiya had left him on his last visit to Uzushio. _Tales of a Gutsy Ninja, huh? Guess I'll give it a try._

* * *

The Hokage's serious face surprised Naruto when he approached the mission assignment desk.

"Team seven, your mission today is a C rank," The Hokage began. "Maibara village has been having trouble with bandits recently. A large group of them killed three merchants in a botched highway robbery. Your mission is to locate and eliminate these bandits." At this, the Sandaime set a scroll down on the desk, which Kakashi retrieved. "Your mission scroll will contain identifying features and their suspected whereabouts." The Hokage fixed each member of team seven with a stare, [looking into their souls]. "Dismissed."

* * *

"Kakashi-sensei, they're just kids."

Finding the bandits hadn't been difficult; their camp consisted of a couple of tents a few miles outside of Maibara, exactly where the scroll had speculated. Naruto's mouth formed a harsh frown as he watched a half-dozen teenagers cook around a fire, one laughing as another told a joke. A few of the teens looked injured; one had an arm in a sling and another sported a bloodstained head rapping.

"See, they're even using a fire when they're supposed to be in hiding," Naruto continued. "They clearly don't know what they're doing."

"If they're just kids, what does that make you three?" Kakashi retorted. "And just like you three, they gave up their second chances when they decided to pick a career in killing. Now, these aren't animals; we can't afford to hesitate. They may not be ninja, but plenty of kids drop out of the shinobi program and decide to use their skills elsewhere."

"When do we strike?" Sasuke asked, face a wall of stone.

"As soon as possible," Kakashi replied. "Survivors of the raid identified a couple of men along with these teens. They're likely asleep, so now is the perfect time. Are you ready?"

Sasuke nodded sharply, Sakura responding in kind, although with less gusto. Naruto, however, fixed Kakashi with a hard look.

"Naruto, this is what we do," Sakura whispered, unwilling to look at the blond. "Better that we get our first kills here then somewhere more dangerous."

Naruto slammed his fist into the earth below him, stifling a scream between clinched teeth. "Fine, then," Naruto bit out, "Let's get just get it over with. What's the plan?"

"Nothing fancy, no jutsu," Kakashi responded. "Make it quick. Sasuke, you lead. We'll form up on you."

Nodding, Sasuke spared one last glance to Naruto, sorrowing eking into his dark eyes before they flashed red.

* * *

Sasuke tried his best to console his teammates later as they puked into the river, but he couldn't stop himself from hurling as well.

* * *

After being debriefed, Naruto took his usual route home, passing Ichiraku's without a glance; he wasn't very hungry tonight. He threw a wave at his landlord before bounding up the stairs to his room. He jammed his key in the door, turned the doorknob and slammed the door. Strength spend, Naruto slid to the floor, crying as he curled his knees to his body. He tried shaking the tears out of his eyes, but new ones replaced them like reinforcements to the front lines. In the movement, he caught sight of something on the floor next to him; picking it up, he found an envelope addressed to him. Still shuddering, Naruto tore open the letter, tears staining the page.

 _Hey Kid,_

 _Sorry I didn't write earlier; I got your letters, but I've been taking more missions now that you're away. You know that Uzushio's light on jonin as awesome as me. But that's not important. To answer your question, I've not been up to too much; ya know, training, eating and stuff. Missing you. (Moms are allowed to say mushy stuff like that occasionally.)_

 _You description of your team killed me; I know Kakashi, so I can guess about what kind of torture that must be. He's not so bad once you get to know him, though. I'd give Sasuke some time; he has a lot of reasons to hate you. Just do your thing and I'm sure you'll worm your way inside of his heart soon enough. That's kinda your style. You'll have to tell me more about this Sakura girl when I see you; I'd like to meet her before you two get married. I kid, I kid._

 _God, I miss you so much, Naruto. It's so weird to not have you here. I'm so, so proud of you. I still can't believe you're actually a shinobi now. You father would be over the moon if he were still here._

 _That's all from me. What's new with you? What have you missions been like? Make any new friends? New enemies? I can't wait to see you again._

 _With love, your mother, Kushina._

 _PS: Have you been keeping up with your sealing? I made a scroll with a few more seals for you to practice, but I can't mail clan secrets like that. You can pick it up at the clan compound in to town._

Naruto read and reread the letter until he fell asleep.

* * *

Sakura ducked another one of Kakashi's punches, rushing through hand seals for a genjutsu. Kakashi shoved Naruto's flying form out of the way and rushed the girl, forcing Sakura to abandon her jutsu for defense.

"You know, switching up who hides underground isn't going to change much," Kakashi commented as he sidestepped Sasuke's attempt at a Headhunter jutsu. "I think today's lesson has gone on long enough."

Sakura didn't even have time to think before Kakashi revealed his Sharingan, knocking her out.

"See anything you like?" Sasuke asked Sakura as she browsed the Uchiha clan library.

"A few weak genjutsu," she replied absentmindedly. "They could help a little, but nothing game changing. None of these weapon styles seem like they would suit me either."

"You do punch pretty hard," Sasuke commented, "You ever think of using Tekko?"

"I saw something on those earlier, but those would force me to stay in the fight. I don't think our team needs any more close-range brawlers," Sakura countered.  
"Fair enough," Sasuke conceded, plucking a scroll of the shelf and reading.

A few minutes of quite study later, Sakura tapped Sasuke on the shoulder. "What do you think about this?" Sakura asked, offering a scroll to Sasuke.

Sasuke jerked back a little after reading it. "Really? Do you think this is you?"

"I don't know, but I think it would serve my purposes well," Sakura conceded, "I at least think I'll try it out."

Sasuke shrugged in reply, handing the scroll back to Sakura. "If you say so. I know a good Uchiha blacksmith; we'll see what he can do."

* * *

"Team seven, you've done well in your last few missions. You've exceeded my expectations for you," the Hokage complimented. "Kakashi informs me that you all are recovering alright after dealing with those bandits."

"We did what we had to do," Sakura said with a shrug. "It was hard, but Kakashi has been helping us get over it."

"Excellent. Well, I've got a very special mission for you today. I'm assigning your team its first B-rank."

"A B-rank?" Naruto questioned, "Isn't that kinda early? I didn't think genin took B-ranks."

"They generally don't," the Sandaime conceded, "but like I said earlier, I'm accelerating your team's workload because you are to be the premier genin team of Konoha. I will explain further when you return from this mission, but I'm confident you can handle this.

"You mission is to investigate an issue in the Land of Waves. As you probably know, one of your fellow genin teams, team ten, took a C-rank in Wave a few weeks back. That mission ended in failure when the client lied about the details of the mission. Instead of protecting an old bridge-builder from bandits, team ten fought A-rank missing-nin Zabuza Momochi and some of his compatriots. Team Ten's sensei decided to pull his team out after sustaining a few injuries on his team and letting the bridge-builder die.

"The Daimyo of Wave contacted us; the situation there has spiraled out of control. The main village is currently ruled by a group of missing-nin. They have imposed their own tariffs on all incoming trade and fought off the Daimyo's small force. Initial reports from an Uzushio scout indicate that the ninja operating in Wave are weak but numerous. Most of them appear to be former genin-in-training from nearby Kirigakure. Zabuza has not been spotted in the area since Team Ten left, so it is likely that he abandoned the area after fulfilling his hit on the bridge-builder.

"Your mission is to deal with ninja problem in Wave however you see fit. Kakashi will use his judgment to make the decision, up to and including total annihilation of the ninja there. Restoring Wave would benefit Konoha in many ways. I trust your team can handle it. You are dismissed; you depart for Wave in three days; use this time to prepare."

* * *

 **CHAPTER END**

* * *

When you think of the ideal ninja, what do you see? Most shinobi think of an all-around fighter who uses all of the ninja arts to secure victory. Well, they're wrong. If you look at legendary shinobi, you'll see that they fight in all different ways, using different jutsu, tactics and gimmicks. However, all of them utilize one specific thing in general to gain victory. I'll call this a "win condition," the move or set of moves that a ninja relies on to actually get the kill.

A great example of a win condition comes from my former student, the forth Hokage, Minato Namikaze. Minato is renowned for his skills as a seal artist, his Ninjutsu prowess, his speed and a dozen other things that would make you think that his success came from his overall skills. Nope. The reason why Minato was so dominate was his usage of his signature jutsu, the Hiraishin. This jutsu by itself was capable of demolishing entire divisions during the third shinobi world war and took Minato to victory against all of his peers. Before he started using the Hiraishin, Minato was an excellent shinobi, his genius talent combined with blistering speed making him a top tier jonin. However, Minato did not become a legend before he settled on his win condition, the Hiraishin.

Now what does that have to do with you, the everyday ninja who doesn't have access to S rank jutsu? Well, you can still find the win condition in your own arsenal. By doing this, you'll be able to train more efficiently and think clearly in a fight, because you already know exactly how the fight's going to end: either you hit your opponent with you win condition, or you die. Simplifies things.

I know what you're saying. "What about the third Hokage? Doesn't he know like a lot of jutsu?" That's true, but that feeds into my next point: you should never fully rely on a single win con. The Sandaime _does_ have a primary win con, his adamantine staff. However, his enormous library of jutsu allows him to pick and choose jutsu to directly counter opponents if need be. Minato also developed another offensive jutsu later in his life that served as a great secondary win con (I can't really share what that is, because it's not very well known, but just think of something really cool and super dangerous. You're probably close).

So, when you train, find your primary and secondary win conditions and focus on setting yourself up to use them. That way, you'll always have a few tested plans going into a fight. One thing to leave you with: some people have successfully found their win conditions, but they are team based. Take the famous Ino-Shika-Cho combination, for example. It relies on all three members working in concert, but each gameplan basically boils down to setting up the Cho to hit hard. If you've got the luxury of a long term team, try building win conditions together.

-Jiraiya of the Sannin, in his book "Short lessons for novice ninja," essay entitled "Finding Your Win Conditions"

* * *

Terms:

Bukijutsu: Weapon techniques. Similar to taijustu in that it refers more to physical skills than chakra control, Bukijutsu covers the usage of all weapons from shuriken to glaves to swords. Some weapon styles have their own sub-classification, like Shurikenjutsu for shuriken and Kenjutsu ***** for swords, but they all fall under the umbrella of Bukijutsu. Bukijutsu refers both to weapon techniques with and without chakra.

Suicide Seals: Suicide seals a specific kind of seals employed by hidden villages onto some shinobi. These seals can be activated to kill a shinobi, usually upon the failure of a mission. These seals can usually be activated either remotely or by the shinobi hosting the seal. These seals can protect shinobi from torture, keeping them from revealing village secrets.

 *** Not to be confused with Kinjutsu, forbidden techniques.**

* * *

 **Authors Note: Hey people! Thanks again for reading. Special shoutouts to the guest reviewer who caught my editing error last chapter; word really sucks some times. I appreciate all of you, even you. Yes, you. If you like the story, go ahead and drop a following, a favorite and review. They help me and make me happy.**

 **This chapter was a lot jumpier than others; let me know if that worked for you in the reviews. I wasn't sure if the constant jumpcuts would be confusing to read.**

 **Unfortunately, I got sick last week, which put me out of writing for two days. That means no sidebar** _ **just yet**_ **. I've got some stuff left to do today, so I'm gonna edit one in tonight. Expect it by 10pm.**

 **That's all I have for you lovely folks. See ya next week!**

 **-Salty Lightning**


	5. Chapter 5: The Promises of Ninja

**Chapter 5: The Promises of Ninja**

* * *

Naruto rushed his opponent, throwing roundhouses and haymakers with careless abandon. His opponent dodged every one, lithe frame contorting around each blow like oil avoiding water. Naruto summoned a clone behind them to try and hold them down, but the combatant just grabbed the clone and flung it at the boy, using Naruto's distraction to create distance. Eyes widening, Naruto snatched the Fūma shuriken from his back to defend against an incoming wave of senbon. The spinning blades deflected most of the needles away, but a few pierced Naruto's shoulders, eliciting a grunt.

Ignoring the needles, Naruto summoned a pair of clones, each sporting their own Fūma shuriken. Weapons spinning, the Narutos charged their opponent, trying to weather a monsoon of tiny missiles. One of the clones dissipated as he took a senbon to the eye, but the two remaining Naruto forced their opponent to abandon their flight. Once again, Naruto let loose a whirlwind of blows, slicing the air in concert with his clone. This time, his opponent went on the offensive, using nimble movements to strike at the Narutos twin senbon. The three continued this way, weaving and striking and deflecting, mixing sweat but no blood in a dispirit dance of aggression.

Fed up with a battle of attrition, Naruto's clone pulled back and hurled his Fūma shuriken at his enemy. Instead of dodging to the side, the opponent sprinted full speed at the weapon, transitioning into a knee slide. The Fūma shuriken sheared a few hairs from the head of the opponent, but they continued their slide until they reached the clone, bounding up to slam a kunai into the clone. The clone dissipated, but the opponent let out a screech, freezing in place. The real Naruto used this opportunity to close the distance and slam his heel into his opponents head in a spinning-heel kick. His opponent tumbled across the field, scoring the earth before sliding to a stop.

Naruto held his now-still Fūma shuriken against his opponent's neck. "Yield," Naruto demanded, voice hard.

"I yield."

Naruto placed his Fūma shuriken back on his back and offered a hand to his opponent. "Wow, nice fight, Ino," Naruto complimented as he helped the girl to her feet. "Not to be rude or anything, but I wasn't expecting that much of a fight."

Ino smiled as she tore off her headband, allowing her ponytail to fall out and shaking out her now-even hair. "Right back at you," Ino replied blandly. "It's nice to get to try out some the new stuff I've been learning." Ino looked at the ground, playing with the dirt with her foot. When she returned her stare to Naruto, it held steel. "Why are you here, Naruto? I know you promised me a spar before you left for Wave, but I doubt that you would come this quickly just for that."

Naruto scratched the back of his head and looked away. "Well, I figured you'd want to know what happened."

"Well, you're wrong," Ino bit out, face twisted in a grimace. "I couldn't care less about what happened in that god forsaken place. Zabuza can rot in hell; I don't care how he got there."

"Ino, I _have_ to tell you what happened," Naruto insisted. "You'd hate me if I let someone else tell you."

* * *

 _Three days earlier_

* * *

"Sense when do you use a Fūma shuriken?" Sasuke asked, pointing at the four-bladed weapon on Naruto's back.

Naruto shrugged. "I always thought they were really cool when I was younger, so I tried to learn how to use one," Naruto explained. "I had a hard time keeping the blades spinning, though, so I stopped using them. I've been working on a seal to try and make the blades spin by themselves on and off for a while now, but I just figured out how to do it."

"If you've had enough chitchat, I think it's time to get this show on the road, children," Kakashi cut in, causing Sakura to leap in the air out of surprise.

"But you're the one who's- oh, what does it matter?" Naruto complained. "Let's just go then."

* * *

Sasuke moderated his breath as his team crossed the river in a paddle boat. The night air hung on the team, wisps of mist adding to the horror-movie atmosphere. Sasuke shuddered as a breeze blew right through him, trying to shake off the feeling of dread that hung on the whole boat. The first leg of the trip to Wave had been uneventful, if tense; Sasuke hadn't worried much then. Now, in the light of the moon, Sasuke could only think of the mission scroll's description of team ten's failed mission. He covered his eye as he felt the phantom pain of on a senbon, breath hitching as he remembered the clinical explanation the scroll held of Shikamaru's injury.

 _While in combat with one of Zabuza's allies, genin Shikamaru Nara, in an attempt to defend his teammate, genin Ino Yamanaka, sustained an injury to the left eye. A senbon penetrated the Nara's pupil, necessitating the removal of his eye._

Try as he might, Sasuke could not shake the idea of losing an eye to the same fate.

* * *

Reaching the shore, team seven crept unto land, surveying the landscape before taking to the forest.

"Here's the plan, team: we make camp here for the night, in the forest," Kakashi began, addressing his team. "During the day, we'll send an away team to scope out the village; nothing fancy, we're just trying to get an idea of what the situation is. Specifically, we need to find out where these ninja are."

* * *

Finding the ninja turned out to be far easier than Sasuke had suspected.

He didn't have to sense chakra or check for weapons. While ninja had a certain way of carrying themselves, even this turned out to be unnecessary.

The ninja were the only people in Wave that were happy. All the villagers kept their heads down, taught skin and jutting bones a testament to their poverty. Every now and then a pair of villagers would share a discreet greeting, but overall they kept a lower profile. In contrast, the ninja laughed and joked with each other, some patrolling the streets, some just passing through. Every one of the walked with a swagger that betrayed overconfidence. The sheer number of ninja alarmed Sasuke; in his thirty minutes of observation, he had already pinpointed ten ninja.

As for Sasuke, he had chosen to steal into town inside of the cart of a villager. Here he sat, watching, a light genjutsu concealing him. At first, the boy had worried that one of the ninja would have noticed the genjutsu, but that concern ebbed away as Sasuke got a better understanding of the ninja. Judging ninja was never a safe bet, but Sasuke guessed that the ninja were genin level at best from the way that they "patrolled;" an academy student could seek past their guard.

Sasuke watched as one of the ninja, a short boy with a buzz cut and blue fatigues, swaggered around a corner, oblivious to the old man on the other side. The two collided, falling to the hard ground in a tangle of limbs. The boy stared murder at the man who cowered, falling to his knee in repentance.

"What are you doing, old man?" the boy raged. "You could have been trying to kill me just there, for all I know! You should have more respect for your liberators!" The boy lifted the man up by his shirt, one fist cocked back to punch.

"Ayumu, the master would not be pleased if he heard that you weren't doing your job," a feminine voice warned from behind the boy. "Aren't you supposed to be at the bridge?"

"Mind your own business, Haku," the boy complained, bite gone from his voice. He let the old man down, shaking his head the man scrambled away. "I just came into town to get a little something to eat. There's plenty of people at the bridge still."  
"I'm sure," Haku drawled, "But now is not the time to be slacking. The boss thinks that Daimyo might call for assistance; if that were to happen, we'd need as many ninja a the bridge as possible.

Ayumu just rolled his eyes. "What are the chances that any ninja would actually come to this backwater village?" Ayumu asked, gesturing to the poverty surrounding him. "Especially after that genin squad got sent packing."

It was at this moment that Sasuke noted that something was off about the scene. A few of the nearby ninja had stopped what they were doing to watch Ayumu's conflict with the old man, and most of them had kept their attention on this "Haku." One, a plain-faced girl with short, dark hair, in particular seemed a little _too_ interested in the conversation, eyes drinking in the scene.

 _Oh no_ , Sasuke thought, _That has to be Naruto_. Naruto had proven in Tanzaku-gai that he could perform a good Henge, a ridiculously good Henge, but he wasn't the subtlest guy in the world. Sasuke wouldn't have worried about it, but this newcomer, Haku, was sending Sasuke some bad signals. Sasuke liked to think that he had pretty good instincts, and these instincts screamed that Haku was an actual threat.

"Why don't you tell that to the boss as your reason for slacking off?" Haku countered, drawing Sasuke's attention back to conversation at hand. "Get back to work, Ayumu. We don't have time for incompetency." Haku turned away from Ayumu, facing the other ninja. "All of you, back to work. You all know your jobs; we've got a lot of work to get done before the bridge is finished." Haku, for his slight form and feminine features, cut an imposing figure, face a mask of cold. The other ninja took Haku's tone seriously and quickly went their own ways, with the exception of one.

"You there: what's your job?" Haku asked the plain girl, smiling at the look of panic found on her face.

"I-uh-I forgot," the girl sputtered, tugging at her collar. "I mean I was on bridge duty, but then there was a prob-a thing. A thing happened."

"A thing happened?" Haku repeated, face hard.

"Yeah, a thing." The girl trilled, eyes wide in fear.

"…get back to work, Suzu," Haku relented, face falling in disappointment. "If you keep goofing off like this, I'll have to tell the boss. He _hates_ slackers."

"I know, I know," the girl whined, "Thanks a lot, Haku. I'll be back to bridge before you know it!" At that, the girl took off, dust kicking up behind her. Haku watched her retreating form, brow set in concentration.

Haku called the one ninja still patrolling the area over. "Have you noticed anything off about Suzu today?"

"No sir," he replied.

"It's just…I don't know," Haku admitted. "I thought I noticed a genjutsu earlier, but maybe I was mistaken. Whatever. Anyway, keep an extra eye out today. I have a bad feeling."

Haku stalked off, walking in the complete opposite direction of Sasuke's cart.

* * *

"There's something big going on," Naruto insisted, addressing his team back at camp.

"What makes you think that, Naruto?" Kakashi asked. "And how big do you mean?"

"Like the Hokage would want to know about it kind of big," Naruto replied. "Kakashi-sensei, they're _finishing the bridge_."

"What?" Kakashi questioned, taken aback. "I thought that progress on the bridge stopped when the bridge builder died?"

Sasuke shrugged in reply. "I don't know. I overheard a conversation where they were talking about the bridge," Sasuke supplied.

"Yeah. From what I heard, the majority of the shinobi here are stationed there," Naruto continued. "I don't know what they're doing, but whoever's in charge wanted the bridge built."

Kakashi rubbed his chin. "What do you three think we should do next?"

"We should find out about the bridge," Sakura offered. "Until we know that, we don't have any plan."

"Astute observation, but how will we find out about the bridge?" Kakashi questioned. "Spying on the bridge is unlikely to turn up the details we want; we can't expect the ninja to sit around discussing the reasons for what they're doing."

"We could interrogate one of the ninja," Sasuke suggested.

Kakashi shrugged. "That could work. How will obtain this ninja? How will we cover his absence?"

"We could gank one of the ninja who's on patrol by themselves and have Naruto impersonate them," Sasuke replied, smiling smugly.

"I don't think that's a good idea," Naruto cut in. "That Haku guy was suspicious earlier; it's too risky to have me impersonate anyone else. It would take too long to for me to learn one of their patterns."

"Very true," Kakashi confirmed, "Sakura, you've been quiet. Do you have any ideas?"

"I was just thinking; What did the villagers seem to think of the ninja?" Sakura asked Sasuke.

"From what I can tell, the villagers are afraid of the ninja," Sasuke admitted. "Why?"

"Well, it might be best to ask one of them," Sakura explained. "They would be more willing to help."

"Who do we ask, then?" Naruto asked.

* * *

The house stood alone outside the village, perched on the water. Rot was overtaking the dock leading up the house, and Sakura and Naruto had to watch their step. The seagulls cawing in the distance drew a sharp contrast with the dilapidated surroundings.

"Do you think anyone still lives here?" Naruto asked, peering through a broken window.

"I don't know," Sakura admitted, "but we have to try." With that, Naruto raised his hand to the door and beat out a few raps. After a few moments of silence, Naruto knocked again with more force.

"Anybody in there?" Naruto called. "If you are, we're friends." The birds above gave the only response. "Well, we tried," Naruto commented. "We may as well check out the inside while we're here."

Naruto turned the door handle, the door swinging inwards with a hiss. Inside, the house looked much more put together than it had from without, swept floors and a set table at odds with yellowing walls.

"I'll check the upstairs," Sakura called, moving to a nearby stairwell. "Look for anything out of the ordinary." Naruto saluted her in response, moving about the rooms. Upstairs, Sakura decided to start at the end of the hall, opening the door to a bedroom. Like the downstairs, the large room looked orderly, small bed on the floor made and everything in its place. The floor was even clean of glass despite the three broken windows in the room. Sakura moved over to the closet, opening the door to reveal a pair of dark pair of eyes. Screeching, Sakura jumped back, pulling a kunai from her pouch as she took in the form in front of her. The figure in the closet turned out to be a woman with navy-blue hair framing her face, dark eyes sunken in in fear and fatigue. Sakura could see a small boy peeking out from behind her, glaring at Sakura.

"Oh, I'm sorry I scared you," Sakura apologized, putting away her weapon. "Are you Tsunami?"

"Get out," The woman bit out through clinched teeth, pointing to the open door.

"I'm so sorry to 'cause you trouble, but we're here to help," Sakura insisted. "I'm here t-"

A blond figure burst into the room, kunai in hand as he frantically looked around the room. Seeing Sakura, Naruto calmed a little, putting away his weapon. "Oh, so you found them," Naruto huffed between breaths to Sakura before turning to the people in the closet. "Hello, sorry for trouble, my name is Naruto Uzu-"

"Get out," Tsunami repeated, raising her voice. "We don't need any more Konoha shinobi in this house."

Sakura glanced over to Naruto, concern obvious in her eyes. Naruto faced Tsunami again. "Look, I know you must not like us very much. I'm sorry for your loss; seriously, Tanzuna didn't deserve to die like that," Naruto consoled. "But you have to understand why the other team left. They weren't prepared for what they got into, so they had to either leave you father or die."

"So that's the bravery of shinobi?" Tsunami questioned. "At the first sign of trouble, do you all cut and run, leaving an old man to face a _monster_ like that man?"

Naruto's face fell, eyes dragged away from Tsunami's. "I'll make this right. I swear it," Naruto murmured. "That's why we're here; we need to know why they're working on the bridge again."

"Isn't it obvious? The shinobi here are running this town," Tsunami explained. "They killed Gatou and took over his operations here. Now they're taxing all of the people at an absurd rate. The bridge will bring more revenue into the village for them to skim."

"Do you know who's leading the ninja?" Sakura asked.

"No one does," the boy blurted out.

"Inari! You don't have to tell them anything!" Tsunami scolded. "Now get out of my house. I'm not telling you anything else."

Sakura started to say something, but Naruto spoke first. "Thank you for the info, Tsunami," Naruto said quietly. "We'll find out who's in charge and deal with them."

Tsunami didn't even reply to this, pointing once again to the door. Sakura slunk of the room, Naruto close on her heels. Before leaving, Naruto glanced back, catching sight of the little boys eyes, wide and watery. That sight stayed with him for the rest of the day.

* * *

"We have to find the leader, then," Sasuke explained. "We can kill him and end this once and for all."

"Would that really work?" Sakura challenged. "I mean, isn't that what happened with this Gatou? He ruled this place, and when Zabuza Momochi killed him, these ninja took over the village. Would killing the leader make a difference?"

"Whether or not it would, Sasuke's initial point stands," Kakashi broke in. "Whatever we're going to do, we have to find this leader.

"Well, we know that he cares about the bridge," Sakura offered. "We could check there."

Sasuke shook his head. "There's no way that he's staying there; a tough leader like this wouldn't let his ninja wonder off to town like ninja we saw. We could attract him to the bridge."

"How would you recommend we do that?" Kakashi queried, smiling as Sasuke's face fell.

"The way I see it, if we raise enough havoc at the bridge," Naruto started, "the leader will be forced to come out and deal with us."

* * *

Naruto stood on the waters below the bridge, biding his time with a shiver. The ninja on guard hadn't paid much attention to the waters below them, so Naruto had had an easy approach. Now he cursed Sakura; of course he would be left with the part of the plan that involved waiting in the cold. Naruto wished that he could at least train or move around to keep himself warmer, but that might attract the attention of the ninja above him. Instead, he was forced to listen to the conversations they were having.

"You seen Ryo's daughter?" one of them, Naruto decided to call him Nasally, said.

"No, why? Something wrong to her?" replied another; Naruto thought of him as Bass-y.

"No, unless you call being too fine a problem," Nasally chuckled.

"You know what the bo-"

"I know, I know," Nasally placated. "I'm not gonna do anything dumb. She _is_ fine, though. What do you think, Tsuchida?"

"Uh, I don't know," Tsuchida blurted out. "I never looked to close at 'er."

"Geeze, Tsuchida, don't piss your pants," Nasally joked. "You can talk to us. We're both young guys; we know what's what."

"Don't give him too much trouble," Bass-y broke in. "I'd be scared too if my town was taken over by ninja."

"Whatever, man," Nasally huffed. "Even civilians should have some balls. My sen-Hey!" Nasally shouted.

Naruto mentally gathered himself. _Guess it's time to get this show on the road_ , he thought.

"Who are you?" Nasally interrogated. "Are you here to do some work on the bridge?"

"You could say that," Sasuke quipped.

Naruto formed his hand sign and waited; he didn't have to wait long as, only moments later, a body tumbled off the bridge into the water. Naruto summoned a group of clones, leading the charge up the support of the bridge. Coming over the top, Naruto spotted the rest of his team engaging a group of five shinobi, Kakashi knocking one out with a quick chop to the neck. Spotting another group of ninja, Naruto rallied his clones and attacked. The blond pulled the Fūma shuriken from his back, keeping it closed as he attacked the enemy with its loop. The boy was glad that he didn't have to kill any of these people, at least not yet, but he did want a chance to actually try out his new toy.

The enemy shinobi proved to be no match for the team. Naruto and his clones made short work of their opponents, turning to see the rest of the team finishing up as well.

"Excellent work team," Kakashi praised. "Naruto, have your clones tie up the unconscious." Kakashi then turned to a nearby civilian who cowered behind a wheelbarrow. "You: do you know where you could find other shinobi." The man cautiously nodded his head. "Good. Go find them and tell them what you saw. As for the rest of you," Kakashi continued, addressing the remaining villagers, "get out of here."

The villagers wasted no time in evacuating the bridge, leaving only team seven and the newly-bound ninja. "Now, we wait," Kakashi ordered.

* * *

It took only five minutes for more shinobi to show up. This group was larger, consisting of about twenty shinobi who walked up within 50 meters of team seven before stopping.

"Is the leader of these shinobi among you?" Sasuke began, addressing the group before him.

"No," replied the one ninja, stepping out in front of the rest. "I am Haku; our leader is elsewhere. What is your business here?"

"We're here to talk to your leader," Sasuke replied flatly. "I won't use a go-between."  
"Konoha shinobi are not welcome here," Haku warned, ignoring Sasuke's reply. "I will give you one minute to take your team and leave before we employ lethal force. I would rather not kill today, so heed my words."

Sasuke sighed, activating his Sharingan while pulling out a kunai. "Looks like we're going to have to do this the hard way, then," Sasuke taunted, smirking at Haku.

Without further warning, Sasuke rushed the group, blurring as he launched a flying kick at Haku. Haku sidestepped the blow, pulling a senbon from his hairpiece and swinging it at Sasuke's neck. Sasuke managed to parry the blow as his team showed up to support him, Naruto summoning a group of clones to assist him. The clones pushed rest of the ninja back, the real Naruto and Sakura moving to assist Sasuke.

"Not so fast!" called a gauntlet-wielding ninja, dashing in between Naruto, Sakura and Sasuke. He lifted up his arm, summoning a chain between him and another gauntlet-wielding ninja and cutting Sakura and Naruto off from their teammate. "You two stand no chance against the demon brothers!"  
"I think we have to take these two to make it to Sasuke," Sakura commented pulling out a kunai. "I'll take point."

"Are you sure?" Naruto questioned. "I can g-"

"I've got it," Sakura ended. "You can back me up with your shuriken." Without further ado, Sakura charged one of the brothers, kunai held in front of her face. Gritting his teeth, Naruto took a Fūma shuriken from his back and hurled it at the other brother forcing him to dodge out of the way.

"Multi-Shadow Clone jutsu!" Naruto called as he summoned a hoard of clones. "Three of you stay with me. The rest of you, keep the rest of those ninja off our backs!" Nodding, the cadre of clones took off, engaging the rest of the shinobi in a brawl.

* * *

Sasuke had quickly realized that Haku could match him blow for blow. Initially, Sasuke had tried to overwhelm the petite ninja with his speed and Sharingan, but the boy had proven to be quite agile, effortlessly weaving around Sasuke strikes. Switching tactics, Sasuke dropped back, flinging kunai at his opponent. Somehow Haku managed to deflect the larger kunai with his senbon, nearly skewering Sasuke with his barrage.

Sasuke then decided to go for some fire jutsu, unleashing some Phoenix Flower fireballs, but Haku countered that with a water jutsu. Rapidly running out of tricks, Sasuke charged Haku again, pumping chakra into his legs and arms as he reengaged in taijustu.

"Not bad, Uchiha," Haku commented casually as he parried two jabs aimed at his face. "I must ask you once again to leave, though. As you can see, you are no match for me, and I'd rather not kill you."

Sasuke grunted in reply, dropping low to deliver a sweep. _There!_ Sasuke thought as he saw Haku jump over the limb. Sasuke poured as much chakra into his aching legs as he could, bursting forward to grab Haku's neck and slam the boy into the ground. Sasuke raised his arm to repeat the maneuver, but Haku swung one leg onto Sasuke's arm and used his other to kick Sasuke in the face. Haku scrambled away as Sasuke released his grip, tossing some senbon to cover his retreat.

"You have sealed your fate the, Uchiha," Haku warned, rolling out his neck. "I will be forced to kill my heart and murder you. Forgive me." Haku raced through hand signs, finishing with a shout. "Ice Release: Shattering Ice Spear!"

Sasuke's eyes widened, Sharingan whirling as they watched Haku create an ice spike have his size and send it at Sasuke. Sasuke sidestepped this spear only to see Haku creating three more. Sasuke, fearing a pincer movement with the spears, raced through hand signs of his own. "Fire Release: Great Fire Dragon!" Sasuke called as he breathed out a fire dragon. The dragon collided with the leading spear, but instead of evaporating the ice, it only managed to melt some of it off.

*CLANK* Sasuke's vision was blocked by a blond head. Coming to his senses, Sasuke stared in awe at Naruto; the boy stood heaving, Fūma shuriken held by the blades in two bleeding hands, ice spear caught in the hole in the middle of the shuriken.

"Go help Sakura," Naruto ordered, turning a forced smile at his teammate. "I'll take his fight."

"Wha-No!" Sasuke shouted. "I've got this! You-"

"Sasuke!" Naruto cut in, silencing his teammate with his fierce expression as much as with his voice. "Sakura needs your help. Trust me!"

Sasuke's defiance was cut short by another hail of needles from Haku, forcing Naruto and Sasuke to jump apart. Glancing back at Naruto's focused expression, Sasuke made his decision and took off, moving to help Sakura.

"I'll offer you the same curtesy I offered your teammate," Haku announced. "If your team leaves now, we'll spare you; I have no desire to kill you."

Naruto scowled at the boy as he pulled out a scroll, unsealing two Fūma shuriken from it. "I'm not doing that!" Naruto huffed, holding a shuriken in each hand. "What do you think I am, a coward?"

"I hoped you weren't a fool," Haku replied coolly. "Only a fool fights when they don't have to. Tell me, what are you even fighting _for_? Is this bridge worth your life and those of your teammates?"

"I could as you the same thing!" Naruto countered. "Why are you forcing all of these villagers into slavery? Why risk fighting us over this?"

Haku chuckled, shaking his head. "See, that's where we're different," Haku explained. "You're here to fulfill a mission. I'm here to further the goals of someone precious to me. If you're not here to protect your precious people, you have no chance of handling me."

Naruto glanced over to his teammates, watching Sasuke and Sakura face off against the brothers from before and a third ninja. "Whatever!" Naruto growled, shaking his head. "I'm not backing down, not for anything!"

Haku sighed, pulling out senbon and throwing them at Naruto. Instead of dodging, Naruto held up one of his Fūma shuriken, blades whirling. The spinning blades deflected the missiles, allowing Naruto to approach Haku. In response, Haku summoned more ice spears, replicating the tactic he had tried on Sasuke. Naruto stopped in his tracks, hurling both Fūma shuriken at Haku. The ice spears impaled Naruto, turning him into a puff of smoke. Haku took a step back in surprise, narrowly dodging the incoming shuriken. Right after passing the slight boy, one of the shuriken, in a puff of smoke, transformed into Naruto. The blond hurled a kunai at Haku's exposed neck. Haku snapped his head out of the way, the kunai digging a trench into the boy's cheek.

Face grave, Haku rushed through hand signs. "This battle ends now," Haku intoned. "Kinjutsu: Crystal Ice Mirrors!" Haku leapt into the air, melting into one of many ice mirrors that now surrounded Naruto. Without hesitation, Haku pelted Naruto with senbon, filling the boy like a pincushion. After a few moments, Naruto fell to the ground, senbon filling every appendage. Haku paused his onslaught, peering at the blond mound in the center of his dome. Suddenly, Naruto edged his way to his feet, pulling senbon out of his joints.

"How are you still going?" Haku sighed, exasperated. "That should have killed you."

Naruto smiled in return, hands forming a cross seal. "It takes more than that to kill an Uzumaki." Before Haku could renew his assault, Naruto summoned a group of clones, each pulling a Fūma shuriken from their back. Forming a protective circle around Naruto, Naruto's clones held out their Fūma shuriken, spinning blades deflecting the hail of senbon that Haku sent at the blond. Naruto himself held a Fūma shuriken over his head, protecting him from overhead assault. After a few moments of hurling senbon at Naruto, Haku stopped his attack, yelping in pain. Now, the Haku reflected in the mirrors all sported an identical senbon in their arms, each reaching to remove it.

"You can't maintain this defense," Haku warned, pulling more senbon from his pack. "I'll get you eventually."

Naruto smiled at Haku, spitting a wad of blood on the ground as he pulled a senbon from his thigh. "Then this is a war of attrition," Naruto laughed. "I'll take that." Sighing, Haku, renewed his attack on the blond, a hurricane of senbon facing a whirlwind of blades.

* * *

Sakura felt her whole body shudder as she placed yet another genjutsu on the blue-haired swordsman who was rushing Sasuke. Sakura felt confident that Sasuke and her could have beaten the demon brothers on their own with no trouble; in fact, Sasuke had been going for a knockout blow to one of them when one of the enemy ninja escaped Naruto's clone barricade and joining the fight, nearly cutting the Uchiha's head off. Now, facing three to two odds, Sakura had to struggle to avoid getting bisected by chains or the massive blade of the blue-haired boy.

Sakura hurled a few kunai at one of the demon brothers, distracting him long enough for Sasuke to switch opponents and take on the swordsman. Disoriented by the genjutsu, the swordsman swung at a phantom image, opening him up for a quick strike from Sasuke. However, the second demon brother shot his chain at Sasuke, forcing the Uchiha to back off. Sasuke pulled back, chest heaving as he landed next to Sakura.

"Got any plans, Sakura?" Sasuke asked, watching as their opponents also collected themselves.

"Not really," Sakura admitted. "All we have to do is take one of them out, but I can't figure out a good way to do it. I'm running low on chakra, as well."

"Me too," Sasuke panted, deactivating his Sharingan. "I guess we'll just have to wing it. Maybe Naruto will win his fight and help out." Sakura looked over to the dome of ice that held her teammate, aching to help out. Steeling herself, Sakura turned back to her opponents, preparing her hands to form a jutsu. Before she could begin, thick mist billowed onto the bridge, lowering invisibility to nearly zero. In front of her, Sakura heard a loud clink of metal on metal and someone grunting in exertion. As quickly as it had come, the mist dissipated, revealing a ninja with his mouth covered in bandages pushing his massive sword down into Kakashi's kunai. Pulling back, the ninja put his sword back on his back, watching Kakashi's exposed Sharingan.

"Haku! To me!" The ninja called, not looking away from Kakashi. "You here to get rid of me, Sharingan Kakashi? Here to get revenge for that bridge builder?"

"Zabuza Momochi," Kakashi commented, ignoring the man's questions. "I had my suspicions, but I doubted that you would stay in the area after turning in your mission. I wouldn't have thought that a missing nin would be bold enough to take up permanent residence, especially so close to his home village."

Zabuza chuckled. "It's not what I intended, but you take the opportunities your given. What do I have to fear from _Kiri_? That village couldn't take me out if they tried, not that they have the resources." Haku landed in a crouch next to Zabuza, his face ashen. Likewise, Naruto rejoined his team, flinching as Sakura placed a hand on his shoulder. "I'll only ask one more time, Kakashi," Zabuza continued, "Why are you here?"

"I'm here to find out what's going on in Wave," Kakashi replied coyly. "Now that I know for sure that you're running the village, I'm here to cut you a deal."

"Oh? What kind of deal does Konoha want to make with the 'demon of the mist'?" Zabuza inquired, humor dancing in his eyes.

"We pay you to defend the village full-time," Kakashi explained. "You continue to operate your ninja force here, with no interference from Konoha as long as you don't cause too much trouble."

"What does Konoha get out of this?" Zabuza asked, face stoic. "I'm no fool, Kakashi. Konoha doesn't give away free aid."

"In return, we get to tell the Wave daimyo that he has his village back, complete with defenders," Kakashi supplied. "We've also heard of your ambitions to take over Kiri; if this is true, then we would have an in into the new Kiri leadership as well as intel on a nation that has gone dark. You'd also act as an early warning system for a potential attack from Kiri given that Wave stands between Kiri and both Konoha and Uzushio. Finally, this bridge you're building would open Wave to commerce with Fire Country again, appeasing our Daimyo."

Zabuza rubbed his chin, eyes fixed on the skies. "Those terms are fair," Zabuza acknowledged after a moment. "If the money is enough, I accept."

"Wait, wait, wait," Naruto cut in, drawing his sensei's attention. "We're allying with Zabuza? He killed the bridge builder! He enslaved Wave! He injured team ten! We should be punishing him, not rewarding him!"

Kakashi started to respond, but Zabuza broke in. "I've got this, Kakashi," Zabuza assured, turning to Naruto. "What you've just seen today is a perfect picture of the shinobi world, kid. I killed the bridge builder, yeah, and I did fight and injure those Konoha ninja. I was under contract. Now that contract, as well as the contractor, has expired, so I have no more quarrel with Konoha. Since Konoha has more use of me alive, they'll make a deal with me." Zabuza opened his arms, gesturing to the shinobi standing around. "This is what it means to be a shinobi. One day, we're enemies, going for each other's throats. The next, we're allies."

Naruto clutched his hands together, digging his fingernails into his palms until they bled. "I made a promise," Naruto murmured. "I promised to avenge team ten, to avenge the bridge builder. I promised to make this right."

Kakashi placed his hand on Naruto's head. "The mission always comes first," Kakashi corrected. "Zabuza, I'll have a squad come out to negotiated the details of our alliance." Kakashi held out his hand to Zabuza. "If you're in agreement, we're done here."

Zabuza stared down at Kakashi's hand, eyebrows crewed up in doubt. After a minute, Zabuza took Kakashi's hand and gave it a firm shake. As the two men released their hands, ninja on each side relaxed, Sasuke letting out a breath.

Haku met Naruto's eye's and stuck out his hand. "Good fight, Uzumaki," Haku praised. "I'm glad we didn't have to fight to the death." Naruto glared in return, refusing to return Haku's gesture. "I was wrong, you know," Haku admitted. "You do have people to fight for."

Naruto turned around and walked away, trying to shake the image of Tsunami's broken expression from his mind.

* * *

 _Present day_

* * *

Naruto looked into Ino's eyes as if searching for something. Dragging his hand through his hair, Naruto opened his mouth to speak only to close it again, looking away. Finally, Naruto set his jaw and addressed Ino. "We didn't kill him."

"What?" Ino exclaimed, wide eyes full of shock.

"We didn't kill him," Naruto repeated, voice lapsing into a monotone. "Kakashi made a deal with Zabuza. He'll be working for Wave country now; Konoha's even paying him."

"How-how could you?" Ino cried, eye's brimming with tears. "You promised me! You promised that you would kill him! What happened to avenging Tanzuna? What about Shikamaru's eye or Asuma-sensei's arm?"  
"The mission-"

"Is that all you have?" Ino wailed. "The mission? Whatever, Naruto! I guess I see what kind of guy you really are." Ino whipped around and started walking out of the training ground.

"Wait! Ino!" Naruto called to the girls retreating form. He stood that way, mouth open, eyes peering into the distance, until after dusk.

* * *

 **CHAPTER END**

* * *

 **END OF PART ONE: Sunrise  
**

* * *

The fourth Hokage was one of the most legendary ninja to ever walk the earth, an impressive feat given how young he died. His four-year tenure was a period of uncertainty; in the wake of the third shinobi world war, Konohagakure had lost a lot of lives and was trying to stabilize once again. The Yondaime's efforts put Konoha well on the way to recovering.

The first major action that the Yondaime made to help Konoha was the enlargement of the genin exchange program. Minato had found the ninja from this program to be very effective during the war; in particular, he cited REDACTED as a great example of an Uzushiogakure ninja who flourished here in Konoha. This program brought Konoha more seal users than it has had in any time in its history and forged a stronger connection between Konoha and Uzushio. Following the Kyuubi incident and the death of the Yondaime, the program was shrunk back to its former size amidst a more strained relationship between Konoha and Uzushio. Nevertheless, the seal users gained through this program have brought Konoha much revenue.

The Yondaime also stressed relations with civilians more than any other Hokage. He founded the civilian council as a way to involve the citizens of Konoha in the village's ninja practices. His efforts brought a booming civilian economy in the village, rivaling the larger cities of Fire Country like Tanzaku-gai. Many shinobi resent civilian involvement in the shinobi world, but the capital generated by this partnership was integral in Konoha's recovery from both the third shinobi world war and the Kyuubi incident.

Of course, these actions were not universally beneficial. Konoha's expanded alliance with Uzushiogakure strained their relationship with their other allies, like Sunagakure. The Yondaime did not put as much care into fostering good relations with any other village. The Yondaime also intensified the enmity with some other villages simply by taking the mantle. He caused so much carnage in the third great shinobi world war that a good relationship with Iwa would prove to be impossible. Finally, the alliance with Uzushiogakure would indirectly prove to be the death of the Yondaime and the weakening of one of Konoha's greatest clans. One must ask if the benefits gained from this partnership outweigh the costs.

-Orochimaru of the Sannin, "The Secret Histories of Konoha: The Yondaime Hokage"

* * *

 **Jutsu List:**

|Technique Name: Ice Release: Shattering Ice Spear | Type: Ninjutsu | Rank: C |

Description: User molds ice chakra into spires of ice, hurling them at will. The size and number of the spears is variable; larger and more numerous spears take more chakra. These spears are sharp enough and can be thrown with enough speed to impale opponents. As with most Ice Release techniques, the ice formed is unusually resistant to flames because of the Water Release chakra used in its formation. This technique requires the Ice Release kekkei genkai.

 **Terms:**

 **Fūma Shuriken** : A class of shuriken that are much larger than the traditional shuriken. Not to be confused with Maiming Shuriken, which are simply larger versions of a shuriken, Fūma shuriken can be folded and features curved blades. Fūma shuriken also have an inner ring in their center which can be used to spin the blades while holding the shuriken, although this technique takes a good deal of skill. Fūma shuriken are not commonly used because of their size; they are more difficult to carry (despite being foldable) and easier to dodge than traditional thrown weapons like kunai and shuriken. **  
Kekkei Genkai** : Kekkei genkai are special abilities that are passed through a specific clan. These abilities are passed through blood, although some can be transplanted to other ninja. Examples include dōjutsu, like the Sharingan of the Uchiha clan, new elemental releases, like Ice Release, and bodily transformation, like the Shikotsumyaku of the Kaguya clan, which allowed them to modify their skeletal structure.

 **Ice Release:** A form of elemental nature transformation of chakra used to produce ice. This is made by combining Water and Wind release chakra. It is the kekkei genkai of the Yuki clan of Kirigakure.

* * *

 **Author's Note** : Hey guys! As always, I love your support. Keep on reading and drop a review if you've got the time. So sorry that this was two days late; my only excuses are that A. I was really busy (but I'm always busy, so that hardly counts) and B. I'm still catching up from the time I lost being sick two weeks ago. Anyway, as you can see, this chapter heralds the ending of part one. **Part two will commence on Friday, October 16** **th** **.** I want to move to a Friday update schedule, and this will give me a chance to do that, as well as get ahead on my writing again.

Time constraints prevent me from putting a sidebar in right now; I have a couple written, but none that I'm ready to reveal yet. I will edit in a sidebar on **Monday** , **October 12** **th**.

 **Update (10/12/15):** I added the sidebar and made a small change.

That's all I've got for you cool people. Thanks for reading!

-Salty Lightning


	6. Interlude

**Sunset of the Uzumaki: Interlude**

* * *

Temari adjusted her fan on her back for the third time as she sat in the waiting room at the Kazekage's office. Temari hated meeting with her father, especially alone. At least with Kankuro in the room, someone else could draw fire away. The Kazekage rarely asked to meet with Temari, with any of his children, but when he did, he meant business. The last time her team had been summoned, Temari had been punished for her team's completion time in their last mission. She still had a scar from that.

Temari shuddered as a jonin filed out of the Kazekage's office, slowly rising to her feet. As she drifted into the Kazekage's office, Temari trained her eyes on her feet, falling into habit. _Remember, Temari, never look him in the eyes_ ¸ Temari reminded herself. _That way he can't see your fear_. Approaching her father's desk, Temari fell to her knees, one leg propping her body up.

"Reporting, Kazekage-sama!" Temari called out, hoping that the routine of her statement could mask the shaking of her throat.

Shadows concealed the Kazekage's face as he sat motionless, seemingly unaware of Temari's presence. Temari knew better than to get impatient with her father, so she stayed where she was, mirroring the stature-like behavior of the Kazekage.

"Temari," the Kazekage murmured, quiet voice ringing through the silence. Temari almost started, but she caught herself. "Your team will be competing in the upcoming chūnin exams in Uzushiogakure," the Kazekage continued. "Do you have any questions?"

Temari considered the question for a moment. She did have questions, but she couldn't figure out if this was a trick or not. All her conditioning told her that questioning her father was foolish, but her curiosity won out. "Yes, Kazekage-same," Temari answered. "Why are we competing in these chūnin exams? Uzushiogakure doesn't usually invite any other nation besides Konohagakure to their exams."

"Uzushiogakure invited us to the exams," the Kazekage announced. "As well as all the other great ninja villages. A good performance in these exams would bring glory to Suna."

 _And more business_ , Temari thought. She had no doubt that her father's primary motivation in sending her to Uzushiogakure was to drive more customers to a dwindling Suna.

"Is your team ready?" the Kazekage questioned, lifting his head to stare at Temari.

Temari could feel his gaze boring into her, demanding her to return it, but she kept her eyes planted to the ground. "Wa-would not Baki be a better judge of our readiness?" Temari queried, cursing her lack of control over her voice. Asking the Kazekage something like that was a gamble given how high-strung he had been recently, but Temari would rather take that risk than giving her father an unsatisfactory answer.

"I have asked Baki about it, but I would like a second opinion," the Kazekage explained. "Baki may oversell his team, but I know that you will be accurate in your description.

Temari pursed her lips. She could give her father a good answer, but she didn't feel great about these exams anyway, so she settled on the truth. "I have no doubt that our team is capable of doing well in the chūnin exams," Temari answered. "But I doubt the…stability of Gaara on this kind of mission."

The Kazekage regarded Temari in silence as the girl continued her contemplation of the ground below her. "I don't know what Gaara would do if surrounded by that many foreign ninja," Temari explained. "Especially if any of the other great nations use this as an opportunity to show off their Jinchuuriki. Gaara might cause an international incident."

"I understand your concern," the Kazekage affirmed. "That is why I will be on hand to restrain it if it gets out of hand." Temari nodded affirmation, happy to have weathered that topic safely. "One more thing before I dismiss you," the Kazekage announced. "Baki may be your jonin sensei, but in the exams, you will be leading your team. I want you to be careful and watchful. I am wary of these exams; I will be debriefing you afterwards on the ninja from each village, especially Uzushiogakure." Temari once again nodded, expression serious. "Dismissed."

In one, smooth motion, Temari rose, turning 180 degrees to face the door before the Kazekage could catch her eyes. As she left the room, her thoughts drifted back to his words. _In the exams, you will be leading your team_. Temari sighed; leading Gaara was about as easy as leading a sandstorm. Nonetheless, Temari knew that she would have to figure something out. Her brothers' lives could be at stake.

* * *

 **Authors Note:** As I said last week, I'm updating today by adding a sidebar to chapter 5 (check that out if you haven't already). I also decided to throw this interlude out there as a bridge between parts 1 and 2. Chapter 6 will be added on **Friday, October 16** **th** and I'll be shifting my update schedule to every Friday from there. Look forward to a return to our regularly scheduled programming then.

Thanks for the support, especially you reviewers. I appreciate your input; it actually does have some effect on how I write the story.

That's all I got for you exquisite people today. See ya!

-Salty Lighting


	7. Chapter 6: Ripples

**Sunset of the Uzumaki Part Two: Midday**

* * *

 **Chapter 6: Ripples**

* * *

Naruto kept his eyes planted on Kakashi's feet as he pressed the man with a few swipes of his kunai. Sakura's words from their team planning earlier ran through his head.

 _Don't look at his eyes_

After fighting Kakashi for months, team seven had picked up a few of his tricks. Too many battles had been lost to an ocular genjutsu, so Naruto was finished playing around. Kakashi stood his ground in the face of Naruto's attack, parrying the kunai strikes with his own. Abruptly, Kakashi tossed the kunai in his hand off to the side, deflecting a kunai thrown by Sakura. Naruto leapt at sensei, stabbing his kunai at the man's throat.

 _Go for the kill every time_

Kakashi chopped Naruto's hand with his own, knocking the boy's kunai to ground with a clatter. Sasuke took this opportunity to attack Kakashi from behind, opting for a tackle. Sensing the move, Kakashi sidestepped, pushing Sasuke toward Naruto. Naruto vaulted over his teammate, pulling another kunai in his pursuit of Kakashi.

 _Never let him get space_

Naruto forced Kakashi on the defensive, the jonin dodging the blond's swipes and stabs in a back pedal. Stopping in his tracks, Naruto threw his kunai as a pair of hands burst from the ground below Kakashi. Naruto pulled the Fūma shuriken from his back as his sensei leapt into the air, avoiding the hands while deflecting the kunai in a deft toss of a shuriken. Before Kakashi could land on the ground, Naruto threw his Fūma shuriken at Kakashi's right side.

 _Push him to his left_

Kakashi touched down, feet dancing as he shuffled to his left, narrowly avoiding the spinning shuriken. Appearing behind Kakashi, Sasuke caught the Fūma shuriken out of the air by its center, quickly throwing it at his sensei. Unable to reverse his momentum, Kakashi bent his torso 90 degrees, letting the shuriken pass over him. Kakashi snapped back upright, throwing a kunai at the Fūma shuriken as it puffed into smoke, revealing Naruto.

"Very good, team seven," Kakashi praised, his kunai catching the Naruto in the gut, turning him into smoke. "But you're going to need better tricks than that-"

Suddenly, a second Fūma shuriken, previously hidden in the shadow of the first, appeared, transforming midair into Naruto. The blond rocketed by Kakashi's left side, plucking the bell from the man's belt as he passed. Skidding to a stop, Naruto readied himself, pulling out another kunai.

"Kai!" Sakura yelled, emerging from the ground, eyes darting around for some sign of genjutsu.

"Well done, team seven," Kakashi complemented, covering his Sharingan with his hitai-ate again. "You finally passed the test."

"Seriously?" Naruto asked, clinching the bell in his hand.

"Seriously," Kakashi chuckled. "I'm impressed by that last trick; did you set that up beforehand?"  
"Yeah," Sakura supplied, beaming. "We've been practicing that combination on the side so that you wouldn't know about it."

"Good. That's one you're going to have to use the next time we face enemy shinobi," Kakashi encouraged. "Anyway, I suppose you three would like some training then?" After receiving three hungry nods, Kakashi offered them his trademark smile. "I've already been training you this whole time. I have nothing left to teach you."

At this, the genin started to rearm, Sakura preparing to perform hand signs. "Whoa, whoa, whoa," Kakashi placated. "Can't you let your sensei have a bit of fun? Alright, I promised you techniques, so I'll keep my word." Reaching into his pouch, Kakashi pulled out three scrolls. "In each one of these, I've created a jutsu package tailored to each of you. I expect you to practice these on your own, but feel free to ask me if you need help. Team training time will remain the same, though." Kakashi handed each one of his students a scroll before continuing. "You are dismissed for the day. Same time, same place tomorrow." Kakashi then disappeared into leaves.

"We actually did it!" Naruto shouted, high-fiving Sakura. "We should celebrate!"

"Actually, I think we should get started on these techniques," Sasuke countered, turning to leave. "We don't have any time to waste." Before his teammates could respond, Sasuke was already gone.

"I guess we can celebrate as a team some other time," Naruto sighed, turning to leave as well. "See ya later, Sakura."

* * *

Naruto jogged through his normal path through Konoha, skipping his usual greetings and moving with purpose. He was here with a singular purpose today; no time for small talk. Naruto made his way into the open gates of the Yamanaka district, searching for a clansman. Naruto didn't have to walk far before he saw a blond-hair young man strolling down the street. After getting directions, Naruto continued his travels, arriving at a medium-sized house near the center of the Yamanaka district.

Naruto rapped on the door, catching his breath from his sprint. Moments later, a well-dressed woman with matching-brown hair and eyes answered the door.

"Hello, Mrs. Yamanaka," Naruto hazarded, figuring that even if he had the wrong house, this must be a Mrs. Yamanaka anyway. "Does Ino live here?"

"Of course," the woman smiled. "You must be that Uzumaki boy who's come to town. Come in, come in. Ino's upstairs right now." Naruto took the woman's invitation and stepped in to the well decorated home, taking in the scents of roses and lilacs. After receiving directions, Naruto approached Ino's door. Despite the speed at which he had rushed to this moment, Naruto still hesitated as his hand hovered over the door. His hand dropped back to his side as he stared at the wood. Tightening his fist, Naruto raised his hand and knocked on Ino's door.

"Who is it?" a female voice asked from the other side, accusation in her tone.

"Ino, it's Naruto. I'm here to-"

"Get out, Naruto," Ino cut in. "I'm not talking to you."

"Ino, please, I have to talk to you," Naruto insisted. "We're comrades; at least hear me out."

"If we were really comrades, you would have kept your promise," Ino retorted.

"Come on, Ino. That's petty and you know it!" Naruto shouted, losing his patience. He received no further reply from the door. "Don't do this, Ino! Stop acting like a child!"

Naruto waited for a reply. He stood in front of the door for 15 minutes, occasionally throwing out another plea, but he got no answer. With a quick salutation to Mrs. Yamanaka, Naruto bounded out the door.

* * *

Reaching his favorite training grounds, Naruto spread out the scroll he had received from Kakashi. Right now, Naruto just wanted to blow off some steam. He skimmed the first jutsu, skipping over the details. Standing up, Naruto gathered himself before trying the jutsu.

"Wind Release: Gale Palm!" Naruto shouted as he clapped his hands together. Frustration seized him as the jutsu yielded only a small breeze. Naruto tried again, and again, performing the jutsu ten times to no effect before he sat back down at the scroll.

 _This is taking too long_ , Naruto thought, _It'll take me forever to get through these techniques; I need to be stronger as soon as possible_. Unable to think of a solution, Naruto summoned a clone.

"What should we do?" Naruto asked, arms outstretched.

"Hmm," the clone mused, hand propping up his head. "We tried using more chakra."

"Yeah."

"We tried using less chakra."

"Yup."

"We tried using something in the middle.'"

"Right."

"Hmm…I don't know, then," the clone admitted.

Naruto shook his head. "You're useless. Here, you start reading the scroll for details while I-" Naruto paused, struck by an idea. "I know! Multi-shadow clone jutsu!"

The training field filled with Naruto's, all sporting the same devious smile. "All right, crew," Naruto called. "I don't know why I never came up with this. I want all of you to work on the jutsu; try whatever comes to mind. On my signal, you'll all dispel so I can get the memories of your training." The clone horde acknowledged Naruto before getting to work, filling the training ground with the sounds training. The original Naruto turned back to his first clone who sat in front of the scroll.

"Alright, let's start reviewing this from the beginning. _Wind Release: Gale Palm: A ninjutsu…"_

* * *

Sweat poured down Sasuke's brow as he finished performing one of his new jutsu for the third time. He heaved for breath, chest racked with exhaustion. Sasuke closed his eyes for a moment only to jerk them back open as his mind flooded with images of battle. He saw Kaede's sword bearing down on him, felt the tree bark digging into his back, remembered the despair that filled his mind. He saw the trifecta of ice spears boxing him in, Haku's expression as icy as his weapons. Sasuke shook his head, walking back to his porch. _I must be dehydrated or something_ , Sasuke thought, trying to shake off the phantom afterimages of battle.

"You should feel ashamed."

Sasuke whipped around, pulling out a kunai to face the intruder. His kunai dropped to the ground as he stepped back in shock. "F-father?" Sasuke choked out, staring at a man who looked remarkably like Itachi. The man loomed over Sasuke, his blindfolded gaze pointed directly at the boy.

"Every mission, the Uzumaki has bailed you out," the man stormed. "Have you forgotten what they did to us?"

"Father, I-he," Sasuke stammered.

"No! No excuses!" the man interrupted. "You are an Uchiha! You're supposed to be the best. Do you think I'll settle for this?"

Sasuke's face fell, his eyes trained on the ground. "I'm sorry, father," Sasuke breathed, falling to the ground as his exhaustion overtook him.

* * *

Sakura drifted into her apartment, putting a pot on to boil as she put away her equipment. Pulling out the scrolls that Kakashi had given her, Sakura sat at her desk, placing the scrolls on the uncluttered surface. As she spread the first one scroll open, Sakura caught sight of the lone object on her desk. Sakura lifted the picture, looking at the tall man with spiked pink hair and the smiling blond woman next to him. They both smiled at the camera, the man's arm resting on the woman's shoulders. She nestled a bundle in her arms, tufts of pink hair poking out. Sakura stared into the man's eyes, wondering once again where he had come from. Her parents had not been notable enough for anyone to know much about them, and Sakura could not find anything about a Haruno clan or pink-haired ninja anywhere in Konoha's history.

A shrill whistle cut through Sakura's reverie, prompting her to gently replace the picture and turn off her stove, pouring a small cup of tea. As her tea steeped, Sakura returned to her scrolls. _No time to get caught up in the past_ , Sakura reminded herself. _There's enough to worry about right now._ Collecting herself, Sakura began to read the first scroll. _Genjutsu: Auditory Delusory: A general purpose genjutsu used to affect the target's sense of hearing. Similar to Optic Delusory, Auditory Delusory works by…_

* * *

"-to! Naruto! Naruto, are you ok?"

Naruto's mind pounded as words drifted into his consciousness. His eyes shot open to find Sakura leaning over him, sky bright over her head. Naruto's other senses faded in as he felt the grass below him, heard the birds chirping above him.

"Where am I?" Naruto whispered.

"We're in training ground thirteen," Sakura supplied, face confused. "What happened?"

"I-I don't know," Naruto admitted, trying to ignore the constant pressure in his head. "What time is it?"

"It's 9:30am," Sakura answered.

"What?" Naruto exclaimed, yanking himself up to sit. He immediately regretted it as his head swan, his vision swimming from the sudden movement. Sakura eased him back onto his back; she was saying something, but Naruto couldn't hear her over the ringing in his ears.

Eventually, Naruto's vision cleared a little, Kakashi now joining Sakura beside him. "I think I'm alright now," Naruto mumbled, rubbing his eyes.

"Naruto, what did you do after team training yesterday?" Kakashi demanded, face grave.

Naruto tried to remember, combing through memories through the maelstrom in his mind. "I-I came out here to practice the jutsu you gave me," Naruto began, grasping for the rest of what had happened. A memory of talking to a clone bubble up to the surface of Naruto's brain. "I summoned some clones to help me train. I can't remember anything else."

"By some, do you mean you used the Multi-Shadow clone jutsu?" Kakashi asked. When Naruto nodded in response, Kakashi sighed. "I have to commend your ingenuity, but as your sensei, I order you to never use that technique for expedited training again. That's part of the reason the Multi-Shadow clone jutsu is forbidden; the mental strain it puts on its users can be crippling." Kakashi gently lifted Naruto into his arms, turning to face Sakura. "You and Sasuke take the day off. Naruto should be fine, but I'm taking him to the hospital anyway. We'll return to normal training tomorrow."

Naruto didn't even listen long enough to hear if his teammates had responded before he passed out.

* * *

 _Two Weeks Later_

"Well, that was easy," Naruto commented, stretching out his limbs as his team walked out of the Hokage tower.

Sakura shrugged. "What'd you expect from a mission to guard a farm from predators for a few days?" Sakura asked. Naruto fixed her with a hard look. "Fair enough. We haven't had the best luck with missions, have we?"

"At least this one turned out ok," Naruto admitted. "We should go get dinner to celebrate. You guys up for it?"

Sakura nodded, prompting Naruto and her to look to Sasuke. "I've got training to do, Uzumaki," Sasuke snapped. "Some of us are serious about being a ninja." He then stalked off, leaving a confused Sakura and sputtering Naruto behind.

"That was…strange," Sakura commented. "We could still go with just the two of us, though."

"On second though, Sakura, I'd better head home too," Naruto grumbled. "I've got some sealing stuff to work on."

Sakura watched as both of her teammates walked to their respective homes. As their forms melted into the dusk, Sakura turned and went her separate way, shoulders hunched.

* * *

"Oi, Uzumaki, you still owe me that spar!"

The voice jerked Naruto out of his thoughts as he turned to face the boy standing nearby on the street. "Oh, hey Kiba," Naruto sighed.

Kiba's face screwed up in confusion. "What's gotten into you?" Kiba asked. "Did your cat die or something?"

"Shut up, Kiba," Naruto warned. "I don't have time for your childishness right now."

"Ok, we seriously need to spar," Kiba insisted.  
"Maybe some other time," Naruto offered. "I've got some-"

"Nope, we're sparring _right now_ ," Kiba broke in, grabbing the blond by his arm. "I won't leave you alone until we do."

"Fine, I'll put you in your place if it'll get you to stop bothering me," Naruto relented. "But don't expect me to take it easy."

* * *

Naruto and Kiba faced off with each other, standing in an empty training ground. Kiba crouched in a ready stance, his puppy companion at his side.

"Whenever you're ready," Naruto called.

He quickly regretted saying that. In the time it took Naruto to blink, Kiba and his dog were already on top of Naruto, launching attacks from both Naruto left and right sides. In a panic, Naruto yanked the Fūma shuriken from his back, swiping it in a horizontal arc in front of him. His opponents pulled back for a moment, giving Naruto the chance to summon a few clones.

"Akamaru, let's make this quick," Kiba called to his partner. "Man Beast Clone!" In a puff of smoke, Akamaru transformed into another Kiba.

"Cover me!" Naruto called to his clones as he pulled a paper seal from his pack, placing it in his palm. The dual Kibas ransacked through Naruto clone squad, using their speed to overwhelm the fragile doppelgangers. In response, Naruto summoned a larger group of clones, each one pulling a Fūma shuriken from their backs, forming a wall of spinning steel. The Kibas tried to restart their assault, but Naruto's clone army forced the boys back with their shuriken.

"Time to get serious," one of the Kibas shouted. "Four Legs jutsu!" Both Kibas dropped on all fours, teeth and nails elongating. The Kibas blurred before attacking the clones again, weaving around the spinning Fūma shuriken to strike individual clones. Even as the feral boys managed to destroy some of the clones, Naruto summoned more to replace them, surrounding Kiba in a sea of orange.

"Gatsūga!" Kiba screamed as both of the boys blurred into spirals, spinning into the crowd of clones. The twin spires tore through the clones, filling the training grounds with smoke as they dissipated.

"Wind Release: Gale Palm!" Naruto cried, clapping his hands together as a the wind kicked up, getting rid of all of the smoke and revealing a charging set of Kibas.

"Kai!" Naruto called as he opened his palm to his opponents, each one reeling back at the flash of light and sound. Naruto summoned a few more clones as he charged Kiba and Akamaru, the dog changing back to his normal form as the two howled in pain. Forgoing his weapons, Naruto picked Kiba up by his collar.

"Give up!" Naruto shouted, knowing that Kiba's ears must still be ringing. "You can't see or hear. You have no hop-"

Before Naruto could finish his sentence, Kiba had wiggled out of Naruto's grasp, striking out at the surprised clones around him before punching Naruto in the gut, sending the blond tumbling through the training field. Falling on to all fours again, Kiba charged haphazardly at Naruto, reaching the boy before he could recover. Kiba scratched and kicked Naruto, pummeling his opponent without regard for form. Kiba finished his combination by grabbing Naruto and chucking him like a ragdoll into a nearby tree. Growling, Kiba stalked up to the blond's limp form, fatigue obvious in his gait.

Without warning, Naruto flashed with visible chakra, features becoming more feral as he revitalized. Naruto adopted the same four-legged stance as Kiba had as he blurred toward the boy, slamming a fist into Kiba's jaw. Naruto leapt and caught his opponent in the air, slamming Kiba into the ground.

"I con-concede," Kiba coughed out, blood dripping from his mouth. Naruto continued to stare into Kiba's eyes, feral fury refusing to abate. "Aren't you glad we did this now?" Kiba asked. "There's no better place to get out your aggression than combat. Good fight, Naruto."

Naruto dropped Kiba to ground as his features returned to normal. "How did you keep going after the flashbang seal?" Naruto asked Kiba's panting form.

"Smell," Kiba offered. "We Inuzuka have great senses of smell, so something like that won't fully work on us." Kiba then rose shakily to a sitting position, meeting Naruto's eyes. "So, what crawled up your butt to make you so pissy?"

Naruto looked away, hands clinching into fists. "It's just…everything, you know?" Naruto explained. "I keep trying to apologize to Ino for something I couldn't even control, but she won't listen. My teammate has reverted to his old bastard-y ways, and every time I go on a mission I'm worried that it might be my last, or I might have to break another promise, or-"

"See, there's your problem," Kiba stopped Naruto. "In my clan, we like to say, 'if you're worried, you just need to punch something.' This ninja thing, it's complicated and it kinda sucks at times." Kiba paused as he grinned at Naruto. "Sometimes you just have to blow off steam and get over it. At least your teammate's alive, same with Ino. In this kind of world, that's all that really matters."

"Thanks, Kiba," Naruto breathed, helping the other boy to his feet. "I needed that. We should spar again sometime."

* * *

 _One Week Later_

"How's the training going, Sasuke?" Naruto asked his teammate as they walked to the Hokage Tower. Sasuke continued his "stare-straight-ahead" routine that he had been doing for a week. With a huff, Naruto grabbed Sasuke's shoulder and turned him around.

"What is your problem!" Naruto snapped, drawing the attention of the people around the team. "How are we supposed to work together if you refuse to talk? What, are you afraid of me too, now?"

Sasuke paused for a moment, shock and anger passing through his face, before he reeled back and punched Naruto in the face, spinning the blond 180 degrees. Sasuke then grabbed Naruto by the collar. "I. Am. Not. Afraid," Sasuke snarled at Naruto. "Mind your own business, Uzumaki." Sasuke then shoved Naruto to the ground and walked toward the Hokage Tower.

"I challenge you to a spar," Naruto called out to Sasuke, causing the boy to stop. "Full contact."

Silence reigned in the street, nearby villagers and ninja alike caught up in the exchange. Sasuke and Naruto both remained motionless, Sasuke deep in thought.

"I accept," Sasuke agreed before walking away toward the Hokage tower.

"What's going on with you two?" Sakura asked as she helped Naruto to his feet.

"I wish I knew," Naruto murmured. "I don't want to think about it right now. Let's see what mission the Hokage has for us."

* * *

Arriving in the lobby, Naruto spotted some familiar faces. In the waiting area sat Kiba, Hinata, Shino and a woman Naruto assumed was their sensei, quietly talking amongst themselves.

"What are you all doing here?" Sakura asked as Naruto and her approached the team.

"We're here to get a mission," Hinata explained, before gesturing to the woman sitting with them. "This is our sensei, Kurenai."

"Hello, team seven," Kurenai greeted, rising to shake their hands in turn. "I've heard some things about you."

Naruto cocked his head to the side, looking into Kurenai's intense red eyes. "'Things,' huh? What sort of things?" Naruto questioned, squinting his eyes in suspicion.

"I've told her how good of a team you are," Kakashi supplied, walking up behind his team. "How you are clearly the best rookie team of the year."

Kurenai rolled her eyes. "We'll see about that, Kakashi," Kurenai commented. "You do tend to over-exaggerate things."

"Your team is here for a mission?" Sasuke cut in, voice all business. "Our team is as well."

"Didn't I tell you? Our mission is a joint assignment with team eight," Kakashi explained, one eye beaming.

"What? You never said anything ab- oh, never mind," Sakura interrupted herself. At that moment, the door to the mission desk opened, a pair of ninja walking out. "Guess that's our que."

* * *

Both teams stood before the mission desk, facing the Hokage at attention.

"Team seven, team eight," the Hokage began, eyeing each of the ninja. "As you already know, I'm assigning you a joint mission. You will be performing a border patrol of the north-eastern Fire Country border. This is only a C-rank; the north-eastern border is notoriously quiet. You will begin just north of Wave country, making your way westward down the Konoha-Whirlpool and Konoha-Rice Paddy borders until you reach the end of Rice Paddy country. Stay alert, but Whirlpool country is an ally and Rice Paddy country has no history of conflict with Konoha, so you shouldn't have anything to worry about. The largest threats will likely be bandits. Any questions?"

"Hokage-sama," Shino began, "What necessitates sending two teams on this border patrol if the border is known for being quiet?"

"While the north-eastern border hasn't seen any conflict sense the end of the last great war, Rice Paddy country has recently started a ninja village." the Sandaime explained. "They have been rather quiet since their inception, but just in case, I would feel more comfortable sending two genin teams instead of one."

"When do we leave?" Sakura asked.

"You depart for the border in two days at sunrise. You should arrive at the first outpost by nightfall."

"Hokage-sama," Naruto started, shifting on his feet. "Do you think there will be time to visit Uzushio while we're out? It's really close to the border."

"No, Naruto, I don't believe you will have time to swing by Uzushio," the Hokage answered. "But I wouldn't be too upset; you'll be able to visit Uzushio soon enough. Any other questions?" After witnessing a chorus of nods, the Hokage continued. "Then you are dismissed. Kakashi, Kurenai, please stay back. I have some things to discuss with you."

As the genin filed out of the room, Kiba gave Naruto a slight push. "We're going to have a rematch during the mission."

Naruto offered Kiba a sly smile. "We never agreed to have a rematch," Naruto contested. "I'd rather just take my win and move on."

Kiba sputtered, getting ready to argue before Sakura cut him off. "Boys, boys, you'll have plenty of time to bash each other's brains out later," Sakura chided. "For now, I think we should have team dinner so that everyone can get caught up. We can exchange strategies and stuff."

Naruto started to reply, but a tap on the shoulder interrupted him. "You're Naruto Uzumaki, aren't you?" drawled a lanky teenager, his dark eyes nearly closed. "Shikamaru Nara would like to meet with you at his clan compound today if you don't have a mission."

"Shikamaru?" Naruto questioned, tilting his head. "What does he want?"

The teenager shrugged. "I have no idea. He just asked me to find you since I was already going to the tower."

"Hmm," Naruto hummed, rubbing his chin. "I guess I'll go see him. Sorry, guys, guess I won't be joining you for dinner." Naruto waved and walked out the door, leaving confused genin behind. Sasuke started to walk out the door himself before Sakura grabbed him by the arm.

"Where do you think you're going?" Sakura demanded.

"I have training-"

"Nope, not today," Sakura interrupted. "This is important, too. You have to know how team eight fights if you're going to work with them in combat." Sasuke didn't reply, choosing instead to stare Sakura down. "Please, Sasuke," Sakura begged.

Sasuke relented, crossing his arms. "Where are we going to eat?" Sasuke huffed, looking to team eight.

"What about ramen?" Kiba offered.

"Not ramen," Sakura disagreed. "What about…"

* * *

Finding Shikamaru turned out to be easier than Naruto had been expecting.

The Nara clan compound sat on the edge of a forest on the outskirts of Konoha. Upon entering the gates, Naruto found no one. The small streets stood empty, lights inside of houses on either side the only indication of life. Naruto walked for a minute, looking for anyone to ask directions from. Near the center of the modest compound, Naruto spotted a form sitting on the porch of one of the identical houses. The blond approached to ask after Shikamaru, only to discover that he had already found the boy. Shikamaru lounged in a chair overlooking the compound, his one remaining eye closed.

"So you got my message, then," Shikamaru murmured, causing Naruto to jump.

"Geeze! You shouldn't try to scare a shinobi like that, Shikamaru," Naruto scolded, scratching his head sheepishly.

"Have a seat, Naruto," Shikamaru offered, gesturing to the seat beside him. From his pocket, Shikamaru pulled out a package of cigarettes, taking one and offering the package to Naruto.

"No thanks," Naruto responded, taking the proffered seat. "I didn't know that you smoked."

Shikamaru made a hand sign, spitting a tiny amount of flame onto the tip of his cigarette before continuing. "I picked it up from my sensei," Shikamaru explained. "They're a good way to pass the time." Drawing on his cigarette, Shikamaru stared out at the Hokage monument, slowly blowing out a stream of smoke.

Naruto stared blankly at his host, awaiting a conversation that didn't come. "So, what's going on, Shikamaru?" Naruto broke in after a minute.

"You see? The sun will be setting soon," Shikamaru commented, pointing to sky over the Hokage monument. "It's the best time of day to cloud watch. The sun casts just enough color on them to be interesting, but not so much as to be distracting."

"Shikamaru, why did you call me here?" Naruto questioned, starting to lose his patience. "I hope it wasn't to cloud watch."

Shikamaru took another draw of his cigarette before he answered. "I wanted to talk to you about wave," Shikamaru replied, turning to face Naruto.

The blond squirmed a little. "Look, I'm sorry-"

"There's nothing to apologize for," Shikamaru cut him off. "Your mission was successful, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, but we let Zabuza go," Naruto admitted, looking at the ground. "We should have killed him."

Shikamaru shook his head. "No, I heard the explanation for partnering with him," Shikamaru corrected. "That was the wisest choice."

Naruto's head snapped back up, confusion evident on his face. "What? Really? Didn't he take away your, your-"

"My eye," Shikamaru finished, pointing to the eye patch covering his left eye. "Yeah, his apprentice did take my eye out." Shikamaru's gaze became unfocused, his eye fixed on something behind Naruto. "It took me a while to get over that, but there's no sense in being vengeful about it now. I won't get my eye back either way. Naruto, _we_ failed in wave, not you." Shikamaru paused as he watched Naruto clinch and unclench his fists. "I wanted to thank you for what you did and tell you to leave Ino alone for a while. I've talked to her already; I know she's upset, but she'll come around."

"Why are you doing this?" Naruto demanded, face grave.

Shikamaru shrugged. "We're comrades," he answered. "Plus, our team kinda owes you one after you cleaned up our mess."

Naruto stood up, offering his hand to Shikamaru. "Hey, thanks a lot. I've got to go prepare for a mission, but I appreciate it."

Shikamaru accepted the shake. "Good luck."

* * *

 _Two Days Later_

"You alright, Naruto?" Sakura asked, sitting beside her teammate as he sat at the edge of the water.

"Yeah," Naruto replied. "You see over there?" Naruto pointed into the distance. "That's where Uzushio is. If we took a boat, we could be there in an hour."

"Really?" Sakura commented skeptically. "I can't see anything from here."

"It's supposed to be that way," Naruto clarified, hugging his arms around his legs.

"Let's try and focus on the mission, alright?" Sakura asserted, patting Naruto on the back. "Come on, it's time to eat."

As Sakura and Naruto approached the camp, they were greeted by an ongoing conversation.

"You're full of it! There's no way that you've taken a B-rank too!" Kiba shouted at Sasuke.

"I don't have to prove myself to you, Inuzuka," Sasuke dismissed, turning away from Kiba.

"Kakashi-sensei, Sasuke's lying, ain't 'e?" Kiba asked, turning to Kakashi, who stood next to Kurenai.

"We did take a B-rank mission," Kakashi offered, fixed in a smirk.

Kiba looked between Kakashi and Sasuke before looking to Kurenai for confirmation. When Kurenai nodded her head, Kiba blanched. "That doesn't make any sense," Kiba explained. "The only reason we got a B-rank this early was-oh, never mind."

"Let's just try to enjoy this meal in peace, alright team?" Kurenai proposed, taking a seat.

"This is going to be a long two weeks, isn't it?" Sakura whispered to Naruto.

She was right.

* * *

 **CHAPTER END**

* * *

 **Jutsu List:**

|Technique Name: Wind Release: Gale Palm | Type: Ninjutsu | Rank: C |

Description: The user claps their hands together, molding wind chakra to generate a gale. This jutsu uses no hand signs, as it is the simplest form of wind manipulation. The strength of the gale depends both on the user's chakra control and the chakra supplied. In general, this technique only generates winds strong enough to knock over opponents.

* * *

 **Author's Note: (** _ **This totally still counts as Friday. Sidebar goes up tomorrow cause it's late right now. Editing takes time, unfort.**_ **) Yo guys, what's happening? Hope you enjoyed the chapter. Thanks for the support! Once again, shoutouts to the reviewers; I appreciate every one. Thanks to the reviewer who pointed out my misspelling of Tanzaku-gai. I don't even know how that one got through; I thought that I had double checked it, but I guess not.**

 **As for the chapter, this is the start of part 2. It's definitely more of a setup chapter, but I put some action in there to keep it interesting.**

 **Trying to acclimate to the new update schedule. This week, it meant that the chapter had to be written in about three fewer days than usual. Next week should be easier and the update should be earlier in the day. I really wanted to update earlier, but I had to go to work.**

 **That's all I have for you guys. Thanks for being swell! See ya next week!**

 **-Salty Lightning**


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